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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27638765">The Twilight Mansion Curse</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/RikuKingdomHearts3/pseuds/RikuKingdomHearts3'>RikuKingdomHearts3</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Angst, Curses, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Mystery, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Slight horror, Supernatural Elements, Ventus has some trauma, brotherly Vanitas</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 18:48:35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>57,296</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27638765</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/RikuKingdomHearts3/pseuds/RikuKingdomHearts3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The old mansion outside of Twilight Town has been abandoned for years, but over the years ominous legends and rumors have formed around it. Stories that a curse lies within the building. They say that all those who enter will never return again. But the can't be true… It's just a story to scare kids...right?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>40</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So while I am working on new chapters of stories, I thought might as well start uploading another cross posted story with FFnet.</p><p>This one started all the way back in 2018!! So please do be aware these earlier chapters are a older style of my writing compared to my newer fics.</p><p>Anyways it's one of my bigger AU ideas, so I hope you all enjoy!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>There is a legend. A legend of the abandoned mansion just outside of Twilight Town. The legend states that all those who enter the mansion never come out. They enter and never return...ever. Some even say a demon spirit or evil warlock roams the mansion, trapping anyone who dares to enter its home. Everyone is warned to stay away from the mansion for this reason. But...children’s curiosity often leads to wandering a little too close to the cursed grounds. So beware, do not try to venture near the mansion, because it may be cursed and haunted. </em>
</p><p>“I can’t believe you fall for that stuff,” a boy with black hair and golden eyes said. He ran his hand through his messy black hair that spiked outward in every direction. </p><p>“But it’s true! People have disappeared after visiting this place! I really don’t think we should have come here,” the other boy with blue eyes and blond hair retorted. Unlike the other boy, his hair was only spiked upward and looked a little less of a mess. </p><p>“Aw stop being such a baby,” the black haired boy replied. “You are curious though aren’t you? You wanna see if the legends are true or not?”</p><p>“No!” the blond quickly replied. He then paused for a moment before speaking again, “Maybe… I mean no! I don’t like the look of this place. It gives off a creepy feeling. I don’t like it.”</p><p>“Ventus, stop complaining already. We are here now, so might as well look.”</p><p>“But what about the curse, Vanitas?” Ventus asked. </p><p>“That is just something they tell us to try and scare us,” Vanitas replied. </p><p>“But then why do they want everyone to stay away from the mansion?”  Ventus asked, taking a few steps away from the front of the tall locked gate that was in front of the mansion. Even if the curse wasn’t real, there was still something scary about this place. Something that felt off about it, and Ventus didn’t like it. </p><p>“Probably cause there is something cool they don't want us to know about.”</p><p> “Or maybe it’s meant to keep us away because it is off limits.”</p><p>“Nah, I bet it’s something fun,” Vanitas replied with a chuckle. </p><p>“No Vanitas. Please, let’s just go back already. I bet my parents know we snuck out by now. We gotta head back,” Ventus said as he slowly stepped backwards. He could feel the hairs rising on his arms. The more they stayed near the mansion, the more nervous Ventus felt. He just really wanted to get away from it as quickly as possible. </p><p>“You're such a scaredy cat,” Vanitas sneered. </p><p>Ventus stopped, tensing up slightly. The fear quickly washed away and was replaced with stubbornness. “I’m not a scaredy cat!”</p><p>“Yeah you are!”</p><p>“No I’m not!”</p><p>“You’re too scared to go check out the mansion, so you are a scaredy cat.”</p><p>“I just want to be safe and… you know, <em>not</em> get cursed,” Ventus replied as he crossed his arms. The fear slowly slipped back, but the stubbornness still held on for a bit longer. </p><p>Vanitas rolled his eyes, “It is not cursed.”</p><p>Ventus let out a huff of air, he was tired of arguing with Vanitas at this point. Without thinking he suddenly shouted, “If it’s not cursed, then prove it!”</p><p>Vanitas smirked, “Thought you’d never ask. Of course I’ll prove it.” Vanitas then started to climb up the large gate. “I’ll go enter the mansion and you can wait out here and keep watch. Then you’ll see there is nothing to worry about.”</p><p>“But… Vani…” Ventus said, feeling the nervousness rising in his chest. He knew this was a very bad idea, and he knew he should probably run to get an adult… but he couldn’t just leave Vanitas here. By this point Ventus really wished they had never snuck out. They were just supposed to have a fun sleepover, not go exploring the cursed mansion. </p><p>“Stop worrying Ven. I’ll just quickly go check it out and then we can head back okay?” Vanitas said as he flipped over the top of the gate and started slowly climbing down it. </p><p>Ventus was about to open his mouth to speak again, hoping to persuade Vanitas to come back, but he ran off towards the front entrance of the mansion. Ventus stood there as he watched Vanitas run up to the doors and slowly pull them open. He waited a minute before turning around to face Ventus, slowly taking a few steps back into the mansion.</p><p>“See? There’s nothing to worry about. Just an old abandoned mansion,” Vanitas shouted over to Ventus as he turned back around and started looking around. “This place is pretty cool. You really gotta come and check it out.”</p><p>Ventus continued to stand where he was. He really didn’t want to go into the mansion, though seeing Vanitas just wander around there made things seem a bit better. But Ventus still did not move. There was still something unsettling about this place. </p><p>“Come on already Ventus, get over here and explore this place with me,” Vanitas shouted again as he walked further into the mansion. </p><p>Ventus started to feel half tempted and was about to start the climb over the gate when he noticed something. The doors to the mansion. They were slowly closing. They were slowly closing all by themselves. Ventus’s eyes widened, “Vanitas! The doors!” </p><p>Vanitas turned around and saw the doors closing. With wide eyes he ran towards the entrance, but the doors slammed shut just before he could make it out. Ventus could hear Vanitas pounding on the doors though.</p><p>“Ventus! Get over here! Open the doors! They won’t budge from inside here!” Vanitas shouted, his voice fearful and frantic. He continued to pound heavily on the doors.</p><p>“I-I’m coming!” Ventus shouted back as he started to climb to the gate as quickly as he could. He was soon at the top of the gate and was about to swing his legs over when he heard a scream. </p><p>Not just any scream. </p><p>It belonged to Vanitas. </p><p>Ventus’s heart pounded as he heard the terrified screams of his best friend. He tried to call out to him, ask what was happening, but he couldn’t find his voice. </p><p>He sat there at the top of the gate, completely frozen by the sound of screaming. </p><p>The screams just seemed to be getting worse. It sounded like Vanitas was in pain while also terrified. And yet Ventus couldn’t get himself to do anything. The screams sent chills up Ventus’s spine as his breathing became rapid.  </p><p>He wanted to run over to the mansion and see what was happening. Rescue Vanitas from whatever was in there. But he also never had felt so terrified in his life. His heart was pounding and his hands were shaking. </p><p>He heard Vanitas let out one last painful scream, and then it was quiet. </p><p>There was not a sound that came from within the mansion.</p><p>“Vanitas?!” Ventus shouted, hoping to hear a response. “Vanitas are you o-okay? You… You better not be messing with me!”</p><p>Ventus waited for a bit, but no reply came. </p><p>Ventus’s heart pounded again as his breathing went frantic. With his while body trembling he somehow managed to climb back down the gate without falling. As soon as his feet touched the ground he ran. </p><p>He ran as fast as he could away from the mansion, not once looking back. Though it wouldn’t have mattered much anyways. The tears in his eyes made it hard to see anything. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>well that's the first chapter made oh so long ago. Thoughts? See you all next time!!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Chapter 2 time!! Hope you all enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ventus ran and ran until he was back at his house. He carefully snuck back in through the window. The same window Vanitas and he went through earlier, when they decided to go to the mansion. That felt like years ago now to Ventus. He now stood in his empty bedroom, hoping this was all just a dream. Hoping that he would hear Vanitas coming back any second. Hoping this was all just a cruel joke being played by him. But Vanitas never came.</p><p>The tears streamed down Ventus's face again as he ran out of his room. He ran down the hall towards his parents room. "Mom! Dad!" He shouted as he opened the door.</p><p>His parents shot up from their sleep, staring wide-eyed at their son.</p><p>"Ven? What is it?" Ventus's mother asked before Ventus climbed onto the bed and threw his arms around her. He was now sobbing.</p><p>"Ventus. Is something wrong?" Ventus's father asked as he switched on the bedroom light.</p><p>Ventus tried to speak. He tried to tell them what happened. He tried to say anything, but only sobs came out. He couldn't stop the tears or his pounding heart. He just continued to cry out. He then felt the gentle arms of his mother wrap around him, which did help him feel a little more calm.</p><p>"Take a deep breath Ven. It's okay. We're here for you. Deep breaths," his mother instructed in her usual calm voice. Ventus listened and began trying to take in as many deep breaths as he could before he answered his parents.</p><p>"V… V-Vani…" Ventus finally choked out after a moment.</p><p>"What about him?" his mother asked as she began to rub his back.</p><p>Ventus took in a few more deep, though the tears would not stop. His head hurt as he tried to process everything and explain it "We...The… The mansion."</p><p>His parents' eyes widened. There was shock and also worry forming in their eyes.</p><p>"Ven," his father began, "Are you saying you two snuck out to the abandoned mansion?"</p><p>Ventus couldn't give a verbal response. His throat hurt too much from the sobs. He just nodded slowly, not daring to meet his parents' gaze.</p><p>His father grumbled, "You two snuck through that hole in the wall didn't you? The workers should have finished closing off that hole to the mansion already. You know you are <em>not</em> supposed to go out there. It's dangerous."</p><p>Ventus slowly nodded again. "I know… b-but...Vani..."</p><p>"Where is Vanitas?" Ventus's mother asked, concerned in his voice.</p><p>Ventus raised his head, looking at his parents finally. His eyes red and cheeks puffy. "V-Vani...the mansion…" Ventus tried his hardest to get the words out, but it felt like they were stuck in his throat. "It… it took him."</p><p>Both Ventus's mom and dad's mouths dropped open, their eyes totally wide.</p><p>After a moment of silence, Ventus spoke up again. He now felt a little more calm. Though his hands still shook, all his current thoughts came flowing out of him. "I'm sorry! I… I didn't want to go. I told him we shouldn't go. I told him it was dangerous. But Vanitas wanted to see it before the hole in the wall was closed off. He wanted to see the mansion and see if it was true. The legend. We went there and he ran inside. And then...then..." The memory of the doors slamming shut on Vanitas came back. Then the sound of Vanitas's screams returned vividly to Ventus's head. The haunting painful screams echoed in his head. The tears began streaming down his face again, "I-I'm sorry!"</p><p>As his sobs returned he felt the warm embrace of both his parents this time. They held him tightly, but it was also gentle and comforting.</p><p>"It's okay Ventus, just remember deep breaths," Ventus's mother replied.</p><p>"It's all my … my f-fault! I couldn't stop Vani… It's my fault he's g-gone!" Ventus shouted through his sobs.</p><p>"No Ven, don't ever think it is your fault. It's that damn mansion," Ventus's father cursed.</p><p>Ventus just continued to sob more. His tears were now seeping into his parents pajamas. He couldn't stop the tears. His heart still couldn't calm down. Not only was it still beating rapidly, but it was also hurting. He couldn't stop thinking of Vanitas, and what could have happened to him. He missed his best friend so much.</p><p>"What are we going to do?" Ventus's mother asked as she looked over at her husband. "I know we should call Vanitas's parents right away. But I would hate to bother them at this late hour and have them try to come all the way out here. Would it be better to call them in the morning?"</p><p>"I...I don't know. I know though that we need to inform the workers to finish sealing up that hole in the wall first thing in the morning. Once that mansion is sealed away… the better," Ventus's father said as he lowered his eyes.</p><p>"W-Will Vani's parents… h-hate me? 'Cause I couldn't stop Vani?"</p><p>"No they won't think that. We'll let them know it wasn't your fault," Ventus's father said as he gently stroked Ventus's head. "I think… we should call Vanitas's parents tonight. I don't think I would be able to sleep otherwise."</p><p>"I agree," Ventus's mother added.</p><p>"You two stay here, and I will make the necessary calls," Ventus's father said as he got out of the bed and made his way out of the bedroom.</p><p>"M-Mom?" Ventus asked quietly as he tried to wipe away some tears.</p><p>"Yes Ven?"</p><p>"Is dad going to also call the police? Can't they do anything?"</p><p>Ventus's mother sighed as she placed a hand on his face. She thought of her next words carefully, as she did not want to worry her son any more than he already was. "Oh the police have tried before to deal with that mansion. Many different people have tried...but it always ends up the same way."</p><p>"The mansion takes them and they are g-gone?" Ventus asked, his eyes still filled with sadness.</p><p>Ventus's mother nodded in response, not having any more words to say.</p><p>"Why… Why does a place like that exist? It's such a scary place."</p><p>"I don't know Ven. Yes it is a scary place, and I have no idea why that place is even there. It's awful to think about. You and Vanitas really should not have gone out there." Ventus's mother said. She wanted to scold her son a little further, for going to such a horrible place, but she saw the terror and sadness still in his eyes. She had never seen her eleven-year-old so shaken up before. With a sigh, she wrapped her arms around him again and pulled him close. "It's okay Ven. You're going to be okay."</p><p>Ventus wanted to believe that. He wanted to just forget this night ever happened, but the screams still lingered in his head. He knew that he would never be able to ever forget that. The cries of pain Vanitas let out as Ventus had just sat there helplessly would never leave his mind.</p><p>It scared him to think that there must have been something so terrifying that it scared Vanitas. He had always known Vanitas was very brave, far braver than he ever was. But something in there was so bad that it actually had scared Vanitas. Something so horrible or scary was inside that mansion, and Ventus never ever wanted to find out what it was.</p><p>"Can I sleep with you and dad tonight? I don't think I can sleep in my room… alone tonight," Ventus said, having finally calmed down enough.</p><p>"Oh of course you can. I wouldn't let you be by yourself after something like this."</p><p>Ventus thanked his mother as he got under the covers and cuddled up next to his mother. She stroked his back and she hummed a sweet melody to him, easing his tension more. Ventus slowly closed his eyes as he drifted off to sleep. Hoping, for one last time, that this was all a dream, and he would wake up to see Vanitas again.</p><p>Though as much as Ventus wished for that to be true, he knew it wasn't true. Vanitas was gone, and he would never be seen again.</p>
<hr/><p>
  <em>14 years later</em>
</p><p>Ventus sat at the kitchen table. He sat there and waited. But he didn't hear any sound from upstairs. After waiting several more minutes he sighed and headed upstairs. He made his way down the hallway to one of the bedrooms. He opened the door and peered inside.</p><p>The lights were still off and the curtains were still closed. And buried under the sheets of the bed was his younger, look-alike brother; Roxas.</p><p>"Roxas are you awake?" Ventus asked, stepping into the room.</p><p>A faint mumble came from the lump of sheets.</p><p>"Roxas you gotta wake up already. It's almost eleven."</p><p>Another mumble came, but no actual words.</p><p>Without another word, Ventus switched on the lights and opened up the curtains, causing Roxas to shift under the sheets further.</p><p>"Let me sleep…" Roxas muttered from under the sheets.</p><p>"No you gotta get up. You can't sleep the day away. You got a big fun day today."</p><p>"I don't wanna get up," Roxas said.</p><p>"Well if you don't get up, you are going to miss your friends coming over," Ventus said as he stood over Roxas's bed.</p><p>"I'll get up before they come over…" Roxas responded.</p><p>"Yeah, you are going to get up right now. Come on, you already missed breakfast."</p><p>"No…" Roxas simply responded.</p><p>"Well if you aren't going to get up, I guess I will just have to stay here and wait for you to get up," Ventus said with a smirk on his face.</p><p>He sat down on the edge of the bed, and then a second later laid back. He laid back right on top of Roxas, who started to squirm.</p><p>"Get off Ven!" Roxas said as he tried to kick and hit his older brother off of him.</p><p>"Not 'till you get up and ready for the day," Ventus casually responded.</p><p>"Fine! Fine! I'll get up! Now get off of me!" Roxas shouted, still trying to push Ventus off of him. "Get your stupid, heavy body off of me!"</p><p>Ventus laughed as he stood up from the bed and ripped the covers off from Roxas. "Good morning then."</p><p>Roxas looked up and shot a quick glare at his brother before sitting up and stretching. "Why do you gotta be so annoying?"</p><p>"Because I am your older brother, and that is what older brothers are for," Ventus replied smugly as he ruffled Roxas's hair. "Now come on, get ready for today and be downstairs soon and I'll start making some food." Ventus then headed out of Roxas's room and walked downstairs.</p><p>"Yeah yeah…" Roxas said as he stood up and started heading over to his closet.</p><p>After gathering his clothes for the day, and taking a brief shower, he was dressed and ready for the day. Just before he headed downstairs, he went over and checked his laptop. He opened it up to his email, and as he expected there was 1 new email, an email confirming that his friends were coming today. Excitement filled him as he ran down the stairs and entered the kitchen.</p><p>Ventus was already cooking something at the stove, the smell and sound of bacon filled the air. While Ventus was finishing making the food, Roxas went over to the fridge and got out the jug of orange juice. After pouring himself a glass he went and took his seat at the table.</p><p>Just a few minutes later, Ventus brought the pan containing the bacon over and set it down on the plates set at the table. He then also grabbed another pan and set down some scrambled eggs next to the bacon.</p><p>"Thank Ven," Roxas said before digging into his food.</p><p>Ventus nodded, "You're welcome."</p><p>The two of them ate their food without saying much. Once they were almost done though, Roxas spoke up, "Do you really need to stay here and watch us? I think I am old enough to have a sleepover with some friends on my own."</p><p>"You should be thankful mom and dad are even letting you have this sleep over while they are out of town," Ventus said before taking a bite of his food. "If I wasn't available to supervise you guys, I am sure they wouldn't allow this.</p><p>"I still don't think we need you to babysit us. I'm fourteen! I'm old enough to take care of myself," Roxas protested.</p><p>Ventus chuckled, "<em>Almost</em> fourteen. You still got a few more months to go."</p><p>Roxas rolled his eyes, "Whatever. I don't see the issue of leaving us alone. We aren't little kids. It's not like we are going to raid the snack cabinet when no one is around."</p><p>"Yeah," Ventus agreed with a chuckle. "Instead you and your friends are young teenagers. And it's never safe to leave young teenagers alone. Especially when three of them are boys and one is a girl."</p><p>Roxas stuck out his tongue in disgust. "We aren't going to do anything like that!"</p><p>Ventus raised an eyebrow, a smug look coming across his face. "Are you sure about that? Don't you like this girl? What was her name again… Kairi?"</p><p>Roxas's cheeks reddened slightly, "Get your head out of the gutter Ven! It's not like that! She is just a good friend."</p><p>"And what about her two other friends?" Ventus asked, keeping the smug look on his face.</p><p>"Riku and Sora have been friends with Kairi since they were little. They wouldn't do anything that you are thinking. So stop asking about that stuff!"</p><p>"Alright. Different topic then. This is Kairi's first time visiting Twilight Town right?" Ventus asked as he gathered up the dishes and brought them over to the sink.</p><p>"Yeah. Ever since we became pen pals, she kept always telling me how she wanted to come here and visit one day. Especially after I went to visit her and her friends in Destiny Islands a little while back."</p><p>"So I take it you will be showing them all around town right?" Ventus asked as he began to wash the dishes.</p><p>"Yeah of course. I wanna show them everything around here. Especially the great view from the clock tower. That is going to be one of the best spots to show them. We will go there as one of the last places, so we can all enjoy the sunset and everything."</p><p>"Sounds like you got it all planned," Ventus said as he started scrubing one of the glasses clean.</p><p>"Yeah. Though…" Roxas paused as he leaned back in his chair. He stared up at the ceiling, lost in his own thoughts. "The hardest thing to try and show them would be that old, abandoned mansion."</p><p>The sound of glass shattering drew Roxas's attention back into focus.</p><p>He sat back up straight as he looked over at Ventus. "Ven? What happened? You okay?"</p><p>Ventus looked down to see that he had in fact dropped the glass. Shards of glass were scattered all over the sink. Not only that, but his hands… they were shaking. His head started to ache as he slowly turned around.</p><p>"What… did you say?" he asked.</p><p>"I asked if you are okay. The glass didn't cut you or anything did it?"</p><p>"No. I mean before that… What did you say… about that mansion?" Ventus asked, his breath slightly shaky and his heart pounding.</p><p>"I just was saying that it will be hard to try and show Kairi and everyone the mansion. Though maybe we can get a good view of it from the clock tower."</p><p>"Don't go anywhere near that place!" Ventus said, raising his voice. He stepped closer to Roxas, a serious look in his eyes as well as in his voice.</p><p>"You know we can't really do that. All the original entrances have been blocked off over the years. It's impossible to reach now. Well… as far as we know. I wanna believe there has to be some secret entrance into that place."</p><p>"Roxas. You are <em>not</em> to go anywhere near that mansion. You know that right? Mom and dad wouldn't wanna hear that you tried to go out there," Ventus replied, his voice still dead serious.</p><p>"Why are you being so uptight about it? It's just an old mansion," Roxas replied back as he stood up from his seat.</p><p>Ventus grabbed onto Roxas's shoulders tightly. "It's not just an old mansion! That place is dangerous and you know it. Don't go anywhere near it!"</p><p>Roxas flinched from Ventus's tight grip, "Geez, what's your deal Ven? Don't tell me you still believe those stories about the mansion being haunted. Those are just old stories. There hasn't been any stories about that place for years."</p><p>"That's because they blocked it off from the public," Ventus said, gritting his words through his teeth. "Thankfully no one has been able to get to that mansion since they closed off all ways of getting to it."</p><p>"Either way, those stories are just lame old ghost stories to try and scare us. There is no curse or anything. There is nothing to be afraid about it."</p><p>"Yes there is!" Ventus shouted as he dug his fingers into Roxas's shoulders. "That place <em>is</em> really cursed! I know that for a fact! I don't want to hear anything more about you trying to go there! Do you understand?"</p><p>"Ven...you're hurting me…" Roxas said as he grimaced from the pain of Ventus's grip.</p><p>Snapped out of his anger, Ventus quickly let go, "Oh… I'm sorry Roxas. But please...please promise me you won't try to go near that place."</p><p>"You can't tell me what to do…" Roxas muttered as he rubbed his shoulders, now slightly sore from Ventus's grip.</p><p>"Yes I can. Mom and dad left me in charge. So I can tell you what to do and not do."</p><p>"Why does it matter so much to you what I do?" Roxas grumbled in annoyance.</p><p>Ventus averted his eyes for a moment, he could feel his hands trembling again. With a deep breath he looked back at Roxas. "I… I lost one of my best friends to that mansion. Back when I was just a few years younger than you."</p><p>Roxas stared at Ventus with a puzzled look. He knew Ventus didn't have a whole lot of friends, but he had never once heard of a friend he lost to the supposed cursed mansion. As far Roxas knew, Ventus only had two super close, best friends, and those two were Terra and Aqua. Roxas knew that those two were still around, so who was this other friend Ventus mentioned? It just didn't make sense to Roxas.</p><p>Roxas scoffed, "Yeah right. You're just saying that to mess with me. Trying to scare me or something. Well it's not working."</p><p>"I'm not lying Roxas…" Ventus said as he stared right at Roxas.</p><p>Roxas was going to retort something back at Ventus, but he noticed the seriousness in his eyes. It wasn't too often that he had a serious look quite like that. He also noticed that Ventus's hands were shaking slightly. Was he actually telling the truth? Roxas still found himself to be in disbelief about what was being said.</p><p>"If it's true, how come I never heard about this before?" Roxas asked as he crossed his arms.</p><p>"I don't… like to talk or think about it…" Ventus said as he lowered his head. "The event...still haunts me today."</p><p>Roxas stared wide-eyed at Ventus. He had never seen his older brother so distraught. But Roxas still didn't fully believe it. He didn't believe in ghost stories or curses or legends. The stories made up about the mansion were just fake. Nothing real about them. He didn't understand how a mansion could apparently take people. It just didn't add up. But something must have happened when Ventus had gone there.</p><p>"<em>Maybe whatever happened was just a coincidence with the mansion," </em>Roxas thought. "<em>It still sounds rather odd though…"</em></p><p>"Roxas… please… don't go near that mansion okay? I don't know what I would do if… if it got you too."</p><p>Roxas almost felt like laughing at that comment. It just sounded silly again. But Roxas didn't want to make Ventus upset again, he already looked pretty down from whatever must have happened back then.</p><p>With a sigh, Roxas nodded. "All right… fine. I won't go near it."</p><p>"Thank you…" Ventus sighed with relief. "Now I gotta clean out the sink. You should probably get ready. Your friends should be here soon."</p><p>"Okay," Roxas said as he turned to head back upstairs. Once he was upstairs and back in his room, he was left to his thoughts.</p><p>"<em>You may not want me to go to the mansion… but now I am more curious about it. Now I really wanna know if the legends are true or not."</em></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Roxas stared out the front window as he waited for his friends to arrive. He stared out the window and then looked over at the clock. The minutes were continuing to tick on by and still no sign of his friends. Slowly Roxas lowered his head to the table and closed his eyes. A little rest wouldn't be so bad right now. One quick rest before everyone arrived.</p><p>Just as Roxas slowly started to drift off, the doorbell rang. Roxas got up from his seat, rubbing his eyes. A moment later he made his way over to the front door. He opened the door to see three kids around his age standing there.</p><p>One was a boy with spiky brown hair and blue eyes who was close in height with Roxas. The other boy, who was a bit taller than all of them, had light blue eyes and silverish-grey hair that ended just above his shoulders. And the girl, who was a little shorter than Roxas, had blue eyes and short reddish hair. Roxas smiled as he saw his three friends from Destiny Islands; Sora, Riku, and Kairi.</p><p>"Hey guys! Glad you could finally make it," Roxas said, as he held open the door for them.</p><p>"We're glad to be here too," Sora said.</p><p>"Sorry if we're a bit late, we got a bit lost on the way here," Riku said.</p><p>"That's all right, you guys made it here and that's what matters. You can all just place your stuff in the kitchen for now," Roxas replied.</p><p>"Thanks," Kairi said, as she entered the house and placed her items on the kitchen table. Sora and Riku followed and did the same.</p><p>As soon as Kairi placed her items down, she ran over to Roxas and gave him a hug. "It's so good to see you again Roxas!"</p><p>Roxas smiled and returned the hug, "And it's good to see you too." He then looked over at Sora and Riku, "It's great to see all of you again." Once Kairi and Roxas finished their hug, he spoke again. "Welcome to Twilight Town."</p><p>"Thanks. Twilight Town is so much cooler in person. I can't wait to see all of it," Sora said as he took a seat at the table.</p><p>"Well I was planning on giving you guys a tour of the town today if you want," Roxas said.</p><p>"Oh that would be great!" Kairi chimed in. "A few days before coming here, I researched as much as I could about all the places to visit here."</p><p>"I think one of the most interesting places would be the clock tower right?" Riku asked. "Is it really true that it has a magnificent view?"</p><p>Roxas nodded. "Yeah for sure. I was planning to show you guys that anyway, but I wanted it to be the last stop on the tour."</p><p>"For the sunset right? I've heard the sunsets here are so beautiful," Kairi said with a sigh. She closed her eyes as if she were imagining what the sunset must look like from the clock tower.</p><p>Roxas nodded again, "Yeah, they are really something."</p><p>Before Roxas could continue, he heard footsteps coming from the hallway. Roxas looked to see that Ventus was now standing in the doorway to the kitchen. "Oh guys, this is my older brother Ventus." Roxas then looked over at this brother while gesturing to his friends. "Ven, this is Kairi, Sora, and Riku."</p><p>Ventus didn't reply as he looked over at Roxas's friends. Before he could say anything, he nearly collapsed against the doorway, as his breathing increased. He gripped the doorframe tightly with one hand as the other held his head.</p><p>Worried, Roxas ran over to Ventus and placed a hand on his back. "Ven? Are you okay?</p><p>"I'm...I'm fine…" Ventus muttered as looked over at Sora, Riku and Kairi. His eyes glancing over all of them. Though it went unnoticed by everyone there, Ventus seemed to hold his gaze longest at Sora.</p><p>"Are you sure?" Roxas asked as he noticed that Ventus's hands were trembling again. Roxas wasn't sure what was causing Ventus to act like this again, but it was a bit concerning. "Maybe you need to lay down? Are you still shaken up from before?"</p><p>"M-Maybe...I'll go do that," Ventus said with a deep breath, turning around and heading down the hallway.</p><p>Roxas watched as Ventus slowly walked down the hall before heading into his room. Once he heard the door close he turned back towards his friends, "Sorry about that. Ven has just been a little… out of sorts I guess this morning. Don't really know why though. What he said earlier was rather ridiculous though when I asked him if he was okay."</p><p>"What did he say?" Riku asked.</p><p>Just as Roxas opened his mouth to tell them about the abandoned mansion and everything, he heard Ventus's voice call out from the hallway. "Roxas, do you think you can come here for a minute? There is something I need to talk to you about."</p><p>"Uh sure. Be right there," Roxas said as he stepped into the hallway. He looked over at his friends, "Sorry about this guys, I'll see what he wants and be right back."</p><p>Roxas sped down the hallway and entered Ventus's room. When he entered he found Ventus sitting on his bed, staring at a photo album.</p><p>"What did you want?" Roxas asked as he closed the door behind them.</p><p>"One of your friends… Sora. He… He reminds me of my friend…" Ventus muttered.</p><p>"What? Are you sure? Maybe you really do need to lay down," Roxas said.</p><p>"No, Roxas, I am serious." Ventus looked up and locked eyes with Roxas. "Sora...H-He's… he has to be the younger brother of my friend."</p><p>Roxas sighed with agitation, "Which friend? You aren't being clear Ven."</p><p>Ventus bit his lip, his gaze shifting to the floor and then back to Roxas. "Vanitas." He muttered the name so quickly that Roxas didn't hear it.</p><p>"Who?"</p><p>"Vanitas… That is… was the name of my best friend. The one I lost to the cursed mansion."</p><p>Roxas groaned aloud when he heard Ventus mention the cursed mansion. "You can't be serious about that."</p><p>"I said I am. Come here and look at this," Ventus said as he pointed to a picture in the album.</p><p>Roxas sighed again as he walked over and looked at the photo Ventus was pointing too. Much to Roxas's surprise his eyes widened when he saw the photo. It was a picture of two boys who looked about ten years old. One of the boys was Ventus...but the other… looked very similar to Sora. He looked like Sora, though this boy's hair was a black and his eyes were shade of gold.</p><p>"That's… your friend?" Roxas asked as he stared at the photo.</p><p>"Yes… that's Vanitas. And if I am correct. Sora is his younger brother," Ventus said as he looked down at the photo.</p><p>"But if that is true how come I never heard Sora mention him before?" Roxas asked, still a little skeptical of the whole thing. Though he now had seen a picture of Ventus's long lost friend, he still didn't believe Ventus had lost him to the mansion.</p><p>"I don't know. Perhaps it has to do with Vanitas being lost to the mansion. Maybe his parents didn't want to mention it to Sora. But I know he has to be Vanitas's younger brother," Ventus said, not taking his eyes off the photo.</p><p>"But how can you be so sure?"</p><p>"Because...The day before Vanitas and I snuck off to the mansion… he had told me that he was going to be a big brother soon. He had told me it would be a few months, but eventually he would have a baby brother or sister. And Sora is just the right age to match up with what Vanitas said. It's too much to be just a coincidence."</p><p>"Ven…" Roxas started off slowly. "I really think you are overreacting about this. I am sorry if I upset you this morning, but I really think you gotta calm down. Your hands...they're still shaking."</p><p>Ventus looked down and saw that his hands were in fact still trembling slightly. He lowered his head. "I'm sorry… It's just that I saw Sora… and… and I don't know. Something came over me. I t-thought it was Vanitas at first. And I just…" Ventus choked a little over his words.</p><p>Roxas frowned. Whether or not he believed Ventus's story he saw that his brother was clearly distraught. He wrapped his arms around him and held him tightly, "It's okay Ven. Do you think maybe a walk for some fresh air would help?"</p><p>Once Roxas finished his hug, Ventus looked over at him and slowly nodded, "I think so... I think I just need some time to myself… after all this."</p><p>"Okay. Well you go do that, I'll just be hanging with my friends. We will be good, I promise."</p><p>"Thanks Roxas."</p><p>With that the two of them headed back towards the front of the house. Sora, Riku, and Kairi were still in the kitchen, chatting among themselves. When the two brothers entered they turned their attention over to them.</p><p>Ventus cleared his throat, "I'm sorry about what happened with me before. I am glad to meet all of you, but right now I'm just going to step outside to clear my head. I hope to get to know you all later." Ventus's eyes shifted over to Sora once last time before he headed out the front door, leaving the four teens to themselves.</p><p>"I hope he will be all right," Kairi said.</p><p>"He will be. He just needs to clear his head. You know though, it's the oddest thing what he got upset over," Roxas said as he looked over at Sora.</p><p>"What was it?" Sora asked.</p><p>"One moment and I'll show you guys," Roxas said before he ran out of the room and down the hall. He entered Ventus's room and picked up the photo album.</p><p>"<em>I am going to get to the bottom of this. If this Vanitas guy really is Sora's older brother then that really is something interesting. But that still doesn't answer what could have happened to him. I am going to find out what happened to him, and if the mansion really is cursed. I will get to the bottom of this, no matter what Ventus says."</em></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Roxas entered the kitchen and placed the album down on the table. He had it closed for now because he wanted to explain everything he could before revealing the photo.</p><p>"So…all of this started this morning when I was talking with Ven about what I planned to do with you guys when you got here. And then I brought up something that caused Ven to act the way he was acting. You guys know about the legend of the cursed Twilight Town mansion right?"</p><p>"We've all heard rumors and stories about it," Riku said.</p><p>"Do any of you believe it's true?" Roxas asked as he sat down at the table while all three shrugged at his question.</p><p>"I don't know… we don't hear as much about it as you would, since you actually live in the town where it is," Sora said.</p><p>"It is a scary thing to think about. All those rumors and stories about people disappearing after going there," Kairi added.</p><p>"Well… Ventus seems to believe that the mansion is really cursed. He told me this morning that years ago he went there with a friend of his, and that that friend was 'taken' by the mansion." Roxas paused for a moment before he looked at Sora again. "And just now... Well...Sora I need to ask you something first."</p><p>Sora raised an eyebrow, "What is it?"</p><p>"Do you… have an older brother?" Roxas asked.</p><p>Sora's eyes widened for a moment, before a little sadness filled his eyes. He sighed as he nodded. "I do… or I did I guess. I never really talk about it."</p><p>"What do you mean?" Kairi asked with a confused look, giving the indication that Sora hadn't even told Kairi. Riku also gave a similar look as Kairi did.</p><p>Sora sighed. "My mom and dad don't like to talk about it, but they told me that my older brother disappeared one day. He disappeared a few months before I was born…"</p><p>"Did your parents ever tell you anything about your brother?" Roxas questioned.</p><p>Sora shook his head as he lowered his head. "No. I've seen a few pictures of him… but other than that I really don't know anything about him. My mom and dad really don't like talking about him…"</p><p>Roxas sighed, now feeling bad that he had asked Sora questions on a touchy subject. He wanted to apologize, but he had no idea what to say. And it seemed neither did Kairi or Riku. They just placed a hand on Sora's back, hoping it would be comforting. Roxas sat there for a moment as a silence had come over all of them. But now he had more information. He couldn't believe it, but what Ventus said might just have been true. "Was his name Vanitas?"</p><p>Sora's head shot up, his eyes wide. "How… How did you know that?"</p><p>"It's what Ven told me. Apparently they were friends when they were young," Roxas answered as he opened up the photo album and showed everyone the photo of Ventus and Vanitas.</p><p>"He does look kind of like you," Kairi commented as she looked at the photo.</p><p>Sora didn't say anything, he only stared deeply at the photo. His mind lost in his thoughts. There was a sadness in his eyes as he looked at the photo. Out of curiosity he slowly flipped the page and found that there were more photos of Ventus and Vanitas together. Photos of them standing nicely and smiling and others of them playing around and goofing off.</p><p>"And you said that Ventus believed that his friend...Vanitas… was taken by the mansion?" Riku asked after a moment.</p><p>"Well Ventus didn't tell me everything. But he said Vanitas was taken by the mansion, which means he must have gone there with Vanitas when he was younger."</p><p>Kairi frowned, "That's so sad to hear. Ventus still seems rather upset about it even today. I do hope he will be all right." Kairi paused for a moment before looking over at Sora, who was still looking through the album. "Are you okay Sora?"</p><p>"Yeah...It's just… nice to be able to see more photos of Vanitas for once," Sora muttered, his focus still on the photos. After a moment he closed the album and looked back at Roxas, "Sorry… I'll look through more of it later if that is alright. But… what does all this mean then?"</p><p>"Um…" Roxas started, trying to regather his thoughts. "So my point was… Ventus thinks that the mansion took Vanitas. He believed in the supposed curse that is in there. But… that can't be real right? There has to be some logical explanation for what happened right?"</p><p>"I don't know…" Kairi started. "That mansion is rather mysterious. I also did some research on it along with everything else I could learn about Twilight Town. Though the mansion was the hardest thing to find information on, there seems to be hardly anything about it online. I did find a website that had a bunch of old newspapers about the mansion though."</p><p>Roxas's eyes widened with curiosity. "What did you find out? Anything about the curse or something?"</p><p>"Well... it's hard to explain," Kairi said as she opened up her backpack and pulled out a folder. "I printed off all the information for some reason… Just a feeling I guess… that I might need it."</p><p>She pulled out a bunch of pieces of paper and placed them on the table. Roxas, Riku, and Sora leaned in to look at what was said on the papers. All of them were articles that looked like they belonged to newspapers, some far older than others. Though the strangest part was most of the text in the articles were faded or blurred, making most of the text hard to read.</p><p>"The oldest thing I could find about the manor was it's creation. It apparently was built over two hundred years ago. And that when it was built its name was '<em><strong>The Twilight Manor</strong></em>'." Kairi picked up one of the papers. "From what I could read here, it's said that The Twilight Manor was a mansion that was said to hold many rooms and that it was to be open to the public. Kind of like a hotel. It was going to hold fun parties and other events."</p><p>"Does that article say who was the owner of the mansion?" Roxas asked.</p><p>Kairi shook her head. "No that's one of the parts that is blurred out. I tried to look that up on it's own, but I literally could not find anything about who the owner of the mansion was."</p><p>"Dang…" Roxas sighed as his shoulders slumped. He knew it didn't mean a whole lot, but he was genuinely curious about the mansion's origins. Though maybe if they could learn something about the owner, it would help, but for now they were at a loss for that.</p><p>Riku picked up one of the papers, reading over the article before he spoke aloud, "This one says that the mansion didn't even stay open for a year. It mysteriously closed after a few months. No word was given as to why it closed or if it would ever open up again. The owner… the name is blurred out… they would not answer any questions pertaining to the mansion."</p><p>Sora now picked up a piece of paper. "Though it says here, there were rumors throughout the years that it was going to re-open several times, but it never did. It remained closed." Sora looked at another piece of paper, "Then about ten years after the mansion had first opened, the owner disappeared. No one knew what happened to them."</p><p>"The owner of the mansion disappeared?" Roxas asked. Now they seemed to be getting somewhere hopefully. "Like just gone and vanished?"</p><p>"That's what it seems," Sora said as he read further into the article. "It says the owner had been living in their mansion on their own ever since it closed. Any workers that had been at the mansion when it was open lost their jobs when it closed. The only one left in the mansion was the owner. Over the years the owner had hardly made contact with anyone outside of the mansion. So when they disappeared, there were not a whole lot of clues leading to where they could have gone. There was an investigation but…" Sora trailed off as he read the next page to the article.</p><p>"But what?" Kairi asked.</p><p>"One day some of the investigators went to the mansion to search for clues to where the owner could have gone...but they never came back," Sora replied.</p><p>"So people really did vanish after going into the mansion...all after the owner vanished as well…" Riku commented.</p><p>"But that doesn't mean it's some curse or whatever right? It could very well be something else… right?" Roxas asked.</p><p>"It's possible… but it's a rather strange thing to happen. Especially after the first few investigators vanished… others went in to try to figure out what happened...but they didn't return either," Sora said.</p><p>"Is there anything else interesting to note?" Roxas then asked as he looked through a few more articles, not finding anything else truly significant. "Like maybe how the rumors of the mansion being cursed was created? Or maybe even any about curses or demons or whatever else is a part of the legend."</p><p>"Nothing else really," Kairi said. "I think people just started that legend due to the owner and those investigators disappearing. There are a few more articles about various people who snuck into the mansion and never came back, but those stories stopped being told in the newspapers a little less than a hundred years ago."</p><p>"Why though? Shouldn't people know that the mansion is taking people? If that is what actually is happening?" Roxas asked. All of this was rather confusing. He still couldn't figure out why and how people could just vanish from a mansion after entering it. There were still so many questions he had.</p><p>"I think I have an idea," Riku said as he leaned back in his chair. "If the public knew for a fact that the mansion was taking people and that the curse was real, that could cause a lot of panic. I bet whoever knew about what was going on with the mansion wanted to keep it quiet, so there would be no mass panic or anything."</p><p>"And then they finally sealed it off from the public, so no one else could go to the place and also get lost to the mansion," Kairi stated.</p><p>"That's why… the stories and rumors died down over the years," Roxas said as he remembered what Ventus had said earlier that morning about it being closed off to the public.</p><p>"None of these though answer why the people vanished though… and that is what we all want to know…" Riku said.</p><p>"Well that means… we have to go to the mansion and figure that part out," Roxas stated.</p><p>The other three stared over at Roxas, all with wide eyes.</p><p>"But...all ways of getting to the mansion are closed off. There isn't any way to get there," Riku said.</p><p>"And even if we did...if the curse of the mansion is real… wouldn't it be dangerous to go there?" Sora asked.</p><p>"Yeah I know… but I just gotta find out about the place. Aren't you guys curious? Why do people disappear when they enter the mansion? I wanna know the reason."</p><p>"I do too…" Sora said with a slight sigh. "If I could find out what that mansion does...I would learn what happened to Vanitas. It's just something I want to know I guess."</p><p>"But there still isn't any way for us to even get there," Riku restated.</p><p>"Well… there may actually be," Kairi said as she picked out one of the piece of paper. "The mansion was built around the same time as the Underground Tunnel Passage System. So when the town was creating all the entrance doors around Twilight Town to connect it all, it says here there was even one tunnel that exited out right near the mansion. But that tunnel was closed when the mansion closed of course."</p><p>"Does it still exist? Or did they wall it off or something?" Sora asked.</p><p>"I don't know… the article doesn't say," Kairi replied.</p><p>Roxas closed his eyes and thought. He thought of the layout of the tunnel system that ran under the town. He had been in there plenty of times before so he was familiar with how everything looked. Suddenly his eyes shot back open as he stood up.</p><p>"It's still there! I remember that there has been one tunnel gate that has always been closed. I never once saw it open. That has to be it."</p><p>"But did it look like they walled it off behind the gate? If it is then we have no chance of getting there," Riku said.</p><p>"I don't know… I never really looked before. But we got to go and see now!" Roxas exclaimed. "We can discover the mystery behind that old mansion."</p><p>"Are you sure though? Isn't it still dangerous to go there?" Sora asked.</p><p>"We would probably get in trouble if we were to get caught," Riku added.</p><p>"We won't get caught," Roxas stated as he shook his head. "No one is watching that area. It's abandoned. All we gotta do is sneak over there and then sneak back once we discover something."</p><p>Kairi looked at Roxas with a concerned look. "What about your brother though? I don't think he would want us to go over there."</p><p>"He can't know about this. He'll just overreact or panic again. This has to be just between us."</p><p>"Roxas…" Riku said, clearing his throat. "You're forgetting though that the tunnel to the mansion is gated off. We don't even know if we can get it open. Even if we did, it may set off an alarm."</p><p>Roxas frowned as he looked at Riku, the only one in their group who was fifteen. Roxas didn't know if Riku was being like this because he was fifteen while the rest of them were fourteen and thirteen or if he was just a downer about most things. Roxas scrunched up his nose before he said, "Why do you gotta be so pessimistic about this?"</p><p>Riku shook his head, "I'm not trying to be. Just being realistic. I know you are curious and excited about the mansion. I am also curious about it, but I am just trying to think things through before you go barreling head."</p><p>"Fine…" Roxas sighed as he finally sat back down. A moment later a thought came to him. "Oh! I know! My friend Pence might be able to help. He is really good with technology and stuff."</p><p>"You sure though? I mean do you really wanna go through with something like this?" Kairi asked.</p><p>"This could be the coolest thing we ever do. I promise we can go look around Twilight Town today, but tonight or tomorrow I wanna try to go to the mansion. What do you guys say?"</p><p>Sora, Riku, and Kairi looked back and forth between themselves and then Roxas. They seemed to be deeply thinking it over. Roxas took in a deep breath as he waited as patiently as he could. Finally they spoke up.</p><p>"I guess we could at least try," Kairi said.</p><p>"It would be rather interesting to see that place in person," Sora added.</p><p>"If we can get it to work, then let's try to do it," Riku also added.</p><p>Roxas smiled, "Great! I'll give Pence a quick call and talk things out with him. This is going to be awesome!"</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Time to build up more of the plot :D</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>A very big chapter ahead of us here!! Enjoy!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Roxas held the kitchen phone in his hand as he began to dial the number while Sora, Riku, and Kairi went to set up their stuff upstairs. The phone rang a few times before someone picked up and answered.</p><p>"<em>Hello?"</em> the voice on the other side of the line asked.</p><p>"Hey Pence, it's Roxas. I got a question to ask you."</p><p>"<em>Sure what's up?"</em></p><p>"Do you think you would be able to hack into the electronic gates in the Underground Tunnels? You know, get them to open and close?" Roxas asked, hoping Pence wouldn't find the request too weird or odd.</p><p>"<em>Yeah… I think something like that could be done fairly easy. Why?"</em> Pence asked with a questioning tone.</p><p>Roxas bit his tongue as he tried to think of an explanation. He didn't want to tell Pence the truth, but he couldn't think of anything else that could be a good cover for it. With a sigh Roxas decided to just tell his plan to Pence. He knew at least Pence was an understanding guy and was always fascinated with the history of Twilight Town.</p><p>"You know that one gate down there that is always closed? I wanted to explore that one," Roxas replied.</p><p>"<em>You mean the one that supposedly leads out at the old, abandoned mansion? I thought you didn't believe in the legends about that place."</em></p><p>"I don't," Roxas retorted. "But I wanted to go see it for myself finally…Just to see what's there and stuff. Plus I got some friends over from Destiny Islands and I wanna show it to them."</p><p>"<em>And so, you need my help to get there,"</em> Pence chuckled happily. "<em>All right I'll help out, but mam… I really wanna come and see the mansion as well."</em></p><p>"But wouldn't you need to monitor the gate to make sure it stays open and stuff?"</p><p>Pence sighed a little. "<em>Yes you're right. Which is why… you gotta find out as much as you can about the mansion and tell me all about it. Okay?"</em></p><p>Roxas couldn't help but laugh a little at Pence's enthusiasm. "Okay I'll tell you anything I can find out. Hm… You wouldn't happen to know anything about it, would you? Aside from the basic history behind it."</p><p>"<em>Other than the owner's name being oddly blurred out from any article and the disappearances? Not really,"</em> Pence answered.</p><p>Roxas sighed. He had hoped maybe Pence knew something else that they didn't. But he still had some hope there could be something Pence could help with. "With those articles with the owner's name blurred out. Since those articles can be accessed online and stuff, do you think you can somehow figure out what the name is?"</p><p>"<em>I've tried before and I was unable to find anything. It's really mysterious. That's why you have to make sure to find out the owner's name!"</em></p><p>"I'll try to find something."</p><p>"<em>So when is this big adventure to the mansion going to happen?" </em>Pence asked.</p><p>"I haven't quite figured that out yet. I was thinking tonight or tomorrow night."</p><p>"<em>Well just let me know when you are going out there and I'll do my part," </em>Pence responded.</p><p>"I will. Thanks Pence," Roxas said, happy that Pence agreed to help out.</p><p>"<em>Anytime, especially since it has to do with the abandoned mansion. Hear from you later then."</em></p><p>"Yeah. Bye," Roxas said before hanging up the phone.</p><p>Just as he did, the front door opened and Ventus came back inside. He seemed much more composed now than he did before.</p><p>"Hey Ven, how are you feeling now?" Roxas asked.</p><p>"Much better now. Still… I am sorry about before… I just couldn't think calmly" Ventus sighed as he looked away.</p><p>Roxas felt the guilt eat away at him. It was his fault that Ventus nearly had a panic attack earlier. All because he had mentioned the mansion. Even though he was still skeptical about the mansion, he didn't like to upset his brother. "No Ven… I'm sorry. I mentioned… you know what… but I didn't listen to you and I just made it worse."</p><p>Ventus nodded in understanding. "It's all right. We're good. Now… Are you still giving your friends the tour of Twilight Town?'</p><p>Roxas nodded. "Yes, and don't worry… I promise we will be safe and all that."</p><p>Ventus chuckled softly, "Not going to try to scare them by leaning over the edge of the clock tower?"</p><p>"Hey! I only did that once when I was little!" Roxas retorted as he scrunched up his nose.</p><p>Ventus laughed aloud as he walked over to Roxas and ruffled his hair, which only seemed to frustrate him more. "Ha ha. Just have fun and don't stay out too late."</p><p>"Yeah yeah I know," Roxas said as he shoved away Ventus's hand and bolted into the hallway. He ran upstairs and into his room where his three friends awaited him.</p><p>"Okay guys, ready for that tour of Twilight Town?"</p><p>All three nodded and soon they headed outside and started their tour around town. Roxas brought them all over town, showing them the coolest and the best spots in all of Twilight Town. Soon they were down in the Sandlot area. Posters and banners were set up everywhere, advertising about the upcoming Struggle Tournament.</p><p>"I can't wait to see a Struggle Tournament in person!" Sora cheered as he looked over the poster.</p><p>"Why see it, when you can enter it, and live it?" Roxas smiled.</p><p>"You entered this year?" Riku asked.</p><p>"Yeah, I've been practicing with one of my friends for months now. Hayner and I have been wanting to do this for years and this is the year we decided to give it a try," Roxas explained.</p><p>"Oh that is going to be so much fun to see! I'll be sure to cheer you on," Kairi said with a smile.</p><p>"Yeah, I can't wait. I know I can make it," Roxas said with determination in his eyes.</p><p>"Hey, maybe next year Riku and I could enter," Sora suggested.</p><p>"That would be really fun, though I would totally beat you," Riku said smugly.</p><p>Sora pouted. "Hey! I could easily beat you! Now we gotta try for next year! And then we will see who wins."</p><p>"And I can cheer all of you on," Kairi said she clasped her hands together.</p><p>"Awesome! We can train together sometime then!" Roxas said as he gave hi-fives to both Riku and Sora.</p><p>The sun was just starting to set near the end of the tour. Roxas led the group to the central market area where a lot of the shops were. Without a word, he ran to one of the shops and purchased four Sea Salt ice cream bars. He handed one out to each friend as they began to walk around the area. Roxas was about to lead them to the clock tower when he looked over at a wall.</p><p>The wall area had a few posters and signs on it, but other than that it was bare. It looked just like a regular wall, but Roxas knew there was something hiding behind it.</p><p>"What is it Roxas?" Sora asked as he walked over to where Roxas stood.</p><p>"This is the wall… that hides the forest that leads up to the mansion."</p><p>"Really just behind there?" Sora asked as he looked at the wall. "Well I can see why climbing over the wall is out of the question."</p><p>"I'm hoping at least we might be able to see part of the mansion from the clock tower," Roxas commented.</p><p>"Well let's get going! I wanna see the view already!" Kairi said as she started walking ahead.</p><p>"Roxas, aren't you supposed to be the one leading us?" Riku said with a small chuckle.</p><p>Roxas turned his attention away from the wall. "Huh? Oh… Oh yeah. Hey Kairi wait up!"</p><p>The four headed up to the Station Plaza, where the clock tower was. Roxas led them up the stairwell that exited out onto the clock tower's balcony area. Sora, Kairi, and Riku stared wide eyed at the large landscape in front of them. The sun was still setting but it had cast a beautiful golden red color across the sky and town. Never before had any of them seen a view that was this breathtaking. Roxas on the other hand just sat down casually, being used to the view already.</p><p>"Come on guys… stop gawking or your ice cream is going to melt," Roxas stated as he began to eat his own ice cream.</p><p>"Oh yeah, sorry I just got lost in the view. This is really the perfect time to be up here," Kairi said as she sat down next to Roxas, still watching the sunset.</p><p>Sora and Riku also sat down as they unwrapped their ice cream bars.</p><p>"I don't understand why you bought us Sea Salt ice cream. They sell it everywhere," Sora said before he bit into the ice cream.</p><p>Roxas shrugged. "It's just a habit of mine I guess. I come up here often with Ventus or Hayner, Pence, and Olette. We like to sit here, eating this ice cream and watching the sunset."</p><p>"Well either way the ice cream is still amazing," Riku said.</p><p>Everyone nodded in agreement to that as they continued to watch the sunset. As Sora, Riku, and Kairi watched the sunset, taking in all its beauty, Roxas scanned the town below. He looked over in the area of the market and looked for where he thought the mansion could be. The only clue he got was a mess of trees tops right next to the wall. The same wall he had looked at early.</p><p>"<em>It has to still be there… We are going to find it...I know we will."</em> Roxas thought.</p><p>For a while during the sunset, the four talked about all sorts of different things. How their lives were, how the school year had gone, and any other fun things that had happened to them. Soon the sun had set and it was getting dark fast. Everyone headed back down the clock tower and started walking back towards Roxas's house.</p><p>"So guys… how about tonight? For… the mansion?" Roxas asked as they walked back. "I talked to Pence and he is ready to help us whenever we wanna go."</p><p>"You really think tonight is a good night to go?" Sora asked.</p><p>"Might as well get it done as soon as possible. Then once it's all taken care of we can focus on all the other fun things."</p><p>"I suppose we could do it tonight," Riku said.</p><p>"What about Ventus? Won't he get worried if we don't return home for dinner?" Kairi asked.</p><p>"We'll go home first and wait for Ventus to fall asleep. Once he is fast asleep that will be the perfect time to head out," Roxas explained. He had thought about this all day, he had his plan and he was ready to enact it.</p><p>"All right then. Let's do it," Sora said.</p><p>The four headed back to Roxas's where Ventus had the table set for dinner. He welcomed everyone cheerfully as they sat down for their food. Roxas kept an eye on Ventus and watched as every once and a while Ventus would look over at Sora when he spoke, but then he would quickly avert his eyes elsewhere.</p><p>"<em>I guess he is still a little uneased with Sora... At least he isn't panicking again… but he hasn't really spoken to Sora directly. I hope he will be okay… I wonder though… if we could find out what happened to Vanitas, maybe that would help Ventus." </em>Roxas thought to himself, spacing out slightly during some of the conversations. It didn't matter to him though what was being said at the moment. All he could think about was getting to the mansion and discovering the truth behind it.</p><p>That night the four sat in Roxas's room, playing a few round of a card game while they waited. After a few more rounds Roxas got up and carefully snuck down the hallway to Ventus's room. Slowly he opened the door and peered inside. Ventus was fast asleep in his bed. Roxas smiled as he made his way back to his bedroom. He stood in the doorway and motioned for the other three to follow. They didn't take anything with them but a flashlight for each of them. Quietly all four of them snuck out of the house, making sure not to make a single sound.</p><p>Once outside Roxas started heading off towards the town, "We are going to enter the tunnel on the side street just near the Sandlot. Once we get there, I'll give Pence and call and have him unlock it for us."</p><p>Without saying anything else, the four continued on towards the side street. They arrived a few minutes later and Roxas pulled out his cell phone. He quickly dialed up Pence and informed him that they were at the gate. A moment later a click sound was heard and the gate opened up.</p><p>"So this is what your friend Pence can do?" Sora asked as they all entered inside the gateway.</p><p>"Yeah something like that. He really knows his tech stuff. He has pulled a good few pranks at school with his hacking skills. I'll have to tell you about that some other night," Roxas said as he turned on his flashlight and the other three followed to do the same.</p><p>Though Roxas knew there wasn't anything in the Underground Tunnels, the echoing of their footsteps in the darkness was a bit unsettling. But Roxas took in a deep breath to calm himself down. A minute later he stood and looked up at the gate to the right up him. It was a little older and ruster than the other gates, giving the strong indication that it had not been used in years.</p><p>Roxas picked his phone and dialed again, "Okay Pence we're here at the gate."</p><p>"<em>Okay, just give me a minute to get through the security system for it. Just give me one moment… Ha… just as I thought. Piece of cake."</em></p><p>There was a click and the gate in front of them slowly started to open. But the gears creaked and squealed as the gate was pulled up. Roxas bit his tongue, pleading that it was not that loud and that no one would hear it. Soon enough the gate was open.</p><p>"Thanks Pence," Roxas said as he flashed his flashlight over the tunnel. There seemed to be nothing but darkness.</p><p>"<em>You're welcome. Call me when you get to the exit of the tunnel."</em></p><p>"Got it. Thanks," Roxas said before hanging up. He placed the phone into his pocket and then turned around to look at everyone. "Okay… this is it. You guys ready?"</p><p>Everyone nodded back and then Roxas looked forward. "Let's hope they haven't walled it off."</p><p>The four slowly started to make their way into the tunnel. Along the way there was various cobwebs strung about. The walls and floor seemed to be covered in dirt and dust, but there didn't seem to be any sign of the tunnel being walled off. Before Roxas knew it he could see the exit gate up ahead.</p><p>He ran up to it and tried to peer out of it. He could see the forest ahead. Quickly Roxas called up Pence one last time and the gate soon opened.</p><p>"You did it Pence. This is great!" Roxas said happily as he exited out of the tunnel, glad to be breathing fresh air again.</p><p>"<em>You're welcome. Now I will do my best to keep these gates open. Call me though if you need anything else."</em></p><p>"Yup, I will," Roxas said before thanking Pence again. Once the phone call was over he looked over at his friends. They were walking around the forest area, examining everything.</p><p>"This little forest here looks so nice, it's too bad that it was closed off along with the mansion," Kairi said.</p><p>"I guess it was safer to wall off this entire area rather than just the mansion itself," Riku commented.</p><p>"Which way leads to the mansion? If there was once any path here, it's been overgrown by this point," Sora said as he looked around, shining his flashlight to try to find something that would show them where the mansion was.</p><p>"I think it's north of the tunnel exit," Kairi said as she closed her eyes. "I remember looking at a map, so I think we just gotta head up past the gate."</p><p>"Then let's go already!" Roxas said as he started to head past the gate at a speedy pace.</p><p>"Hey wait up!" one of the friends called out, but Roxas wasn't too focused on who said it.</p><p>Roxas ran up a small hill, weaving in and out of the trees, and soon he came to a small clearing. Roxas walked out of the forest and looked around him. For an area that had been completely abandoned for many years, this area was strangely kept clear of a lot of overgrowth. Though there were still plenty of vines and other plants, it still was not as much as the forest.</p><p>But there it was. The mansion was right before him. He went up to inspect the gate that was covered in vines. A large chain and lock was placed over the front of it. Roxas grabbed the lock and tried to yank it off, hoping it was old and rusty, but strangely it was strong and sturdy.</p><p>"That lock seems fairly new for a place that has been abandoned for over two hundred years," Riku commented as he came up next to Roxas, also looking at the lock.</p><p>"The mansion though doesn't look as bad as I thought it would," Kairi said as she looked over the building.</p><p>Vines and moss covered most of the wall, but other than that the walls looked still perfectly intact. There were no cracked or broken windows, and the doors seemed shut normally.</p><p>"The lawn though seems to be the only thing that is in disrepair," Sora added.</p><p>The lawn had various pieces of cement and statues strewn about. All of them were broken and crumbling. It was hard to make out what any of the statutes even were. Roxas began to wonder if any of that was important. But he quickly looked from that and back to the gate.</p><p>"Since we can't get the gate open, I guess we gotta climb over," Roxas said as he placed his flashlight into his pocket.</p><p>"Should we really be doing this? I don't know why… but this just doesn't feel right," Kairi said.</p><p>"What do you mean?" Sora asked.</p><p>"I don't know… I guess seeing the mansion in person… it's far creepier than I thought," Kairi replied.</p><p>"I will admit, something is strange about it. How can it be in such good condition if no one has lived in it for years?" Riku said.</p><p>"Maybe it just looks good on the outside. The inside could be all abandoned looking and stuff," Roxas said.</p><p>"I still don't know… I just have this weird feeling I guess," Kairi said.</p><p>"Well if you guys wanna wait here, I can go in first and check if it's safe," Roxas said as he began to climb the gate.</p><p>"Maybe one of us should go with you," Riku said. "You shouldn't just go alone."</p><p>"Ah… I'll be fine. I'll also be quick about it and then you all can come and join me." Roxas got to the top of the gate and carefully made his way back down on the other side.</p><p>"No I agree with Riku, one of us should go with you and the other should stay with Kairi," Sora replied.</p><p>"Guys I got this. How about this. If I am not back out in five minutes one of you can come and look for me?" Roxas asked.</p><p>"That's still not really safe to do…" Riku responded.</p><p>"Just let me do this guys. I was the one who wanted to do this in the first place. I promise I'll be careful."</p><p>Without waiting for a response, Roxas ran up towards the mansion. He slowed down when he got to the doors, examining them carefully. He reached around and wrapped his fingers around the handle of one the doors. With a deep breath he pulled open the door and braced himself for whatever could be on the inside.</p><p>Roxas slowly leaned in and looked into the front area of the mansion. Based on what the articles had said about this place being a hotel like manor, Roxas guessed that this area was a lobby of some sorts. There were two large staircases on each side of the wall. They lead up to a second story that seemed to lead off elsewhere. As soon as Roxas stepped forward he heard a crunch behind his shoes. Roxas took out his flashlight, turned it on and looked down beneath him. There were shards of broken glass. The entire floor seemed to be covered in dirt, dust, broken glass, and other various broken things.</p><p>Roxas took a few more steps in and was about to call out to his friends when he heard a voice.</p><p>"You shouldn't be here." It was a young female voice, and it was coming from somewhere but Roxas didn't see anyone in the lobby.</p><p>"What? Who… Who's there?" Roxas asked, finding himself to feel a little bit nervous. He didn't expect anyone to actually be in the mansion. Was someone actually living here? Or was he just hearing things?</p><p>"Please… leave now. You still have a chance," the voice came again.</p><p>"Who are you? Where are you?" Roxas asked as he walked further into the mansion, turning his flashlight around, hoping to find whomever was speaking.</p><p>"You have to leave...before it's too late," the voice responded.</p><p>"But who even are you? Do you… Do you know about the curse of this mansion or whatever it is?"</p><p>"Please…" the voice pleaded. "Please you must leave. It isn't safe if you stay here for much longer."</p><p>Roxas sighed. He wasn't getting anywhere with this voice. "What are you even talking about? Why is it not safe?"</p><p>"Because if <em>he</em> returns soon and finds you here…it will be too late," the voice said, this time sounding much closer to Roxas.</p><p>Roxas turned to his left and his flashlight shone on something...or someone. Roxas nearly screamed, but he managed to hold it in. There was a girl now standing there. She looked around his age and had deep blue eyes. Her hair was a light blonde hair that reached past her shoulders, with bangs falling over her face. She was wearing a short white dress with simple, blue sandals.</p><p>"Who are you?" Roxas asked. He couldn't believe there was actually someone else here. He then wondered if Sora, Riku, or Kairi could see this girl from where they were standing.</p><p>"That's not important. You need to leave… now."</p><p>"But…" Roxas started, trying to recall what the girl had just said before. "What do you mean 'if he returns'? Who is 'he'?"</p><p>The girl seemed to hesitate for a moment before she spoke again. "The one who owns this manor."</p><p>"The one who owns… Wait who is that?" Roxas asked, suddenly getting very curious. He could finally get some answers. He could finally figure things out.</p><p>"I can't...tell you that. Just please! Please leave now!" The girl raised her voice slightly.</p><p>Roxas stiffened as he stood up straight. "I am not leaving until I get some answers."</p><p>"Namine, is something wrong?" a new voice came in. This voice sounded like a young adult male.</p><p>The girl, known as Namine, looked up towards the staircases. Roxas also looked, turning his flashlight in that direction, and his eyes went wide with shock. He rubbed his eyes, wondering if what he was seeing was just his imagination. But when he looked again, the guy was still standing there. He looked to be in his twenties and wore a black sweatshirt and black pants, but that was not the surprising part. This guy… had spiky black hair and golden colored eyes. Roxas knew that this person had to be Vanitas.</p><p>"<em>He's still alive?!" </em>Roxas thought as he could not take his eyes off Vanitas, and it seemed neither could Vanitas. He seemed to be looking right at Roxas with a odd look.</p><p>"I'm just trying to get him to leave before… before… <em>he</em> comes back," Namine said.</p><p>"Just use your magic already to get him out," Vanitas replied while tilting his head slightly to the side.</p><p>Namine fidgeted a little, wringing her hands together. Whatever she seemed to be thinking, she didn't seem to like it. But a moment later she nodded and looked back at Roxas, who was still confused by Vanitas being there.</p><p>"Please...leave and don't return," Namine said before raising a hand, moving her fingers slightly.</p><p>"Wh-What?" Roxas asked as he felt himself lift off the ground. He looked down to see that he was floating a few feet above the floor! Before Roxas could say or do anything he was floated outside of the mansion, back over the gate and placed on the ground. He saw Namine standing in the doorway, looking over at him one last time before the doors slammed shut.</p><p>Roxas stood there, completely frozen. He had no idea what had just happened, and couldn't seem to understand anything. He tried rethinking what he had just saw, but voices interrupted his thoughts.</p><p>"Roxas?! What just happened?"</p><p>"Are you okay?"</p><p>"What happened in there? Who was that girl?"</p><p>Roxas tried to speak, but he couldn't find any words. His legs gave out as he fell to the ground. His friends swarmed around him, asking if he was okay and making sure that he was all right.</p><p>Eventually Roxas nodded, "I'm fine… I just...I don't really know what happened."</p><p>"What did you see in there?" Sora asked.</p><p>"It was pretty abandoned in there… but that girl was there," Roxas responded.</p><p>"Did she say anything?" Kairi asked.</p><p>"Yeah… she kept telling me to get out for some reason. She seemed rather worried about something. Something about someone returning to the mansion."</p><p>"Who do you think that was?" Riku asked.</p><p>Roxas shook his head. "I have no idea… but there was someone else there."</p><p>All three looked at Roxas with more curiosity. They stared at him as they waited for him to explain.</p><p>"I saw… Vanitas."</p><p>"What? How can that be?" Riku asked.</p><p>"You mean like… you saw…" Kairi trailed off as she shuddered.</p><p>Sora on the other hand kept quiet. He just stood there, with wide eyes, though they were filled with confusion.</p><p>"No. He is still alive. He was clearly older than he was in the photo. He...He's still alive."</p><p>"What's he still doing there then if he has been alive all this time then?" Riku asked.</p><p>"Maybe… it has to do with the curse," Sora said, speaking up.</p><p>"You think so?" Kairi looked over at Sora to see the look in his eyes. "Are you going to be okay Sora?"</p><p>"Yeah… I'll be fine. Hearing that he is still alive is just a little bit of a shock."</p><p>Roxas suddenly jumped to his feet. "We gotta go back and tell Ven! We have to tell him that Vanitas is all right!"</p><p>"But wouldn't he be upset that we even went out here in the first place?" Riku asked as he crossed his arms.</p><p>"Yeah… but if we explain about Vanitas I bet that will make him happy," Roxas said as he stared walking back towards the forest. "Come on! Let's go!"</p><p>The group headed back to Roxas's house, and when they entered Roxas headed to Ventus's room and knocked on the door. A moment later a sleepy Ventus opened the door.</p><p>"Roxas?...It's late… What is it?"</p><p>"Ven… there is something I need to talk to you about."</p><p>Ventus yawned. "Can't it wait? It's the middle of the night."</p><p>"No. I have to tell you this now. You see I went to the mansion-"</p><p>"You what?!" Ventus interrupted, now suddenly being more awake.</p><p>Roxas took in a deep breath. He knew this would be difficult to get through with Ventus, but he knew he had to try. He had to tell him about Vanitas. "Yes I went to the-"</p><p>"Roxas! Why would you do that? I told you before NOT to go there!" Ventus shouted as he grabbed hold of Roxas.</p><p>"I know! But-" Roxas tried to speak again, but he was cut off again.</p><p>"No! I said that place is dangerous! Why did you still go there!" Ventus looked up to see that Sora, Riku and Kairi were all standing near the door. They didn't want to listen in on the conversation, but they wanted to be there in case Roxas needed some back up.</p><p>"Why didn't you try to stop him?" Ventus as, not letting go of Roxas.</p><p>"We all went there together," Riku answered.</p><p>"We all agreed on it. I'm sorry," Kairi added as she lowered her head.</p><p>Ventus stared at them and then back at Roxas. His eyes were full of sadness and frustration. "Roxas… Why? Why would you do this? I said before that place is dangerous…You c-could have..."</p><p>Roxas took this moment to speak up before Ventus could continue. "But I am still here, aren't I? I am perfectly fine!"</p><p>Ventus seemed to snap out of his anger. He now looked more confused than angry. "Y-Yeah… but how did you get away from there? I thought… if you entered you'd get trapped."</p><p>"There was a girl there."</p><p>Ventus raised an eyebrow. "A girl?"</p><p>Roxas nodded. "She was just in the mansion… and somehow she flew me out. Using magic or something."</p><p>"I've never heard of a girl being there…" Ventus muttered as he seemed to be thinking things over. He then shook his head and looked back at Roxas. The anger seemed to be back in his eyes. "None of that matters though. You directly went against what I said! Not only did you go to the mansion… but you also lied to me!"</p><p>"But Ven, there was something else…" Roxas said.</p><p>"I don't want to hear anymore of it! I am not happy Roxas!"</p><p>"Ven…"</p><p>"No! Just stop Roxas. In the morning we are going to have a long talk about this!"</p><p>Roxas took in a deep breath. He decided that shouting the information was the only way Ventus would listen.</p><p>"Vanitas was there and is still alive!"</p><p>Ventus stared at Roxas, his eyes growing larger. Suddenly his grip on Roxas tightened. Roxas winched as Ventus had started digging his nails into his shoulders. Ventus seemed to waved between being surprised and being angry with a hint of sadness.</p><p>"D-Don't joke about that! That is not something you should joke about!" Ventus shouted. It almost looked like tears were forming in his eyes.</p><p>"I-I'm not joking," Roxas said as he gritted his teeth from the pain. "I really did see him there. He was standing at the top of the stairs in the mansion."</p><p>Ventus's breathing increased as he looked from Roxas to his friends. "Did any of you see Vanitas? Tell me! Please…"</p><p>"No… we didn't. Roxas was the only one who went into the mansion," Kairi said.</p><p>"We only saw the girl. She was standing in the doorway when Roxas was thrown out," Sora added as he stared down at the floor.</p><p>Ventus seemed to space out as he stared at each one of the teens. Soon he closed his eyes as he started to think things over. His grip lightened enough that Roxas was able to pull away from him, though now his shoulders were slightly sore. A few seconds later Ventus opened his eyes again.</p><p>"Stay here… all of you," Ventus said before closing his bedroom door.</p><p>Everyone looked at the door and then at each other. No one knew what to say, not even Roxas. A minute later Ventus came out, dressed in his everyday clothes. There was a serious look in his eyes, the look Roxas rarely ever saw in his brother.</p><p>"How did you get to the mansion?" Ventus asked.</p><p>"Um.. the tunnel system," Roxas answered quietly, not sure what to think of his brother's attitude. "There is that one gate that was always closed. But I got Pence to unlock it all. They should still be unlocked. We entered through the side street tunnel."</p><p>Ventus closed his eyes as he took in a deep breath. "I want you all to stay here. Don't follow me."</p><p>"But Ven...Where... I mean why are you going out there?" Roxas asked, now realizing what Ventus was going to do.</p><p>"If Vanitas is really there…" Ventus paused as he looked over at Sora. The two looked right at each other for a moment before Ventus continued. "Then I am going to go there and bring him back."</p><p>"But you don't know why he has been there all this time! You said it yourself, that place is dangerous," Roxas replied.</p><p>"Roxas… I'm going there. Please don't follow…" Ventus then took off running towards the front door. It slammed a moment later, leaving the four alone in the house.</p><p>Ventus ran as fast as he could towards the side street. He kept running and running as he got closer to the side street. Thankfully when he got there, the gate was still open. He ran inside and started looking for the old gate. His heart was racing, and his hands trembled slightly, but he kept moving forward.</p><p>"<em>Vanitas...I'm coming. I'm finally coming. This time… I won't be scared. I won't run away. I'm going to finally save you."</em></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Big things are happening this chapter. Let's see and find out what!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Roxas paced back and forth in the kitchen. He was growing more and more impatient by the minute. Ventus had only left a little while ago, but to Roxas, it felt like hours. Sora, Riku, and Kairi were all sitting in the kitchen, but none of them said a word. No one knew what to say after Ventus ran out of the house. All of them waiting in silence, hoping Ventus would return soon.</p><p>Finally Roxas stopped pacing. "That's it… I am going after him."</p><p>"But Roxas," Kairi said, speaking up. "He said not to follow."</p><p>"Yeah, but I'm not just going to sit here while he runs over there without thinking."</p><p>Riku raised an eyebrow. "You know… you kind of ran into the mansion without thinking."</p><p>Roxas sighed with frustration. "That's not the same! Ven has some trauma connected with the mansion. He could have a breakdown if he gets too close to it. I need to go after him."</p><p>"Then we will all go with you," Sora said as he stood up.</p><p>Roxas shook his head. "No, I'll be the only one to go. Ventus is my brother… and it's my fault he's so distressed about all of this. I have to be the one who goes after him."</p><p>"But…" Kairi started again, but Roxas held up a hand to stop her.</p><p>"I'll be fine. If Ven and I are not back in...let's say thirty minutes, you guys can come after us, okay?" Roxas said. "I promise I'll be safe."</p><p>Roxas didn't wait for a response from his friends as he ran out the door. He knew they would probably tell him to wait for Ventus or have them all go together. But he didn't want to run the risk of something happening to any of them. He still was unsure what the deal was with the mansion, but he figured there had to be something. Not only was Vanitas in the mansion and apparently alive, but there was also that girl.</p><p>"Namine…" Roxas muttered, recalling the name that Vanitas had said. "Just who is she? What does she have to do with the mansion?"</p><p>Roxas made his way back to the Underground Tunnel system. Everything was still open since Roxas had forgotten to call back Pence to have him close them. He ran all the way through the tunnels until he got to the exit in the forest. He scanned the area to see if Ventus was there, but there was no sign of him. Roxas began to worry as he made his way up to the mansion.</p><hr/><p>
  <em>A few minutes earlier</em>
</p><p>Ventus had run as fast as he could all the way to the mansion. As soon as he had left the forest, he froze at the building in front of him. It was the mansion. The cursed mansion. It still looked the same as it did those 14 years ago.</p><p>Ventus gripped his head as the memories came back again. Vanitas running into the mansion, the doors slamming shut, his terrified screams. The pain in Ventus's head increased as he stumbled backwards. He was half tempted to run away, but he made himself stay where he was. If what Roxas said was true… then he had to go inside and find Vanitas. He had to find out why Vanitas was here all these years.</p><p>Ventus took in several deep breaths until the pain in his head calmed down. He walked back up to the gate of the mansion and slowly started to climb it. Once he had made his way down he shuffled across the yard to the front doors. His fingers traced over the handle several times before he found the courage to pull them open.</p><p>He peered inside the dark room before him. He saw no sign of anyone. Just an empty abandoned lobby. He stepped inside and looked around some more when he noticed something in the corner of his eye. At the top of one of the staircases was a young girl in a white dress.</p><p>Ventus gasped. "<em>That must be the girl Roxas talked about!"</em></p><p>The girl seemed to notice him as she stood up, staring wide eyed at Ventus. Before she had the chance to say anything he ran up to her and looked her directly in the eyes.</p><p>"Where is Vanitas?"</p><p>"Wh-What?" the girl asked, seemingly a little nervous from the close confrontation.</p><p>"I asked where Vantias is. He is here… right?" Ventus asked, uncertainty filling him.</p><p>The girl slowly nodded.</p><p>"Where? Please tell me!" Ventus pleaded.</p><p>"He's… He's in room 226," the girl answered meekly.</p><p>Ventus didn't bother to give any thanks to the girl, he just took off running up the rest of the stairs and down the hallway of the second floor. He looked at the doors and the numbers on them until he got down to room 226.</p><p>Ventus could feel the nervousness and fear rising in him. Vanitas could possibly be right behind this door. Or if he wasn't… Ventus didn't want to think about that. He had come all this way...he wasn't going to give up now. Ventus wrapped his fingers around the door handle and closed his eyes. He took in one more deep breath before quickly opening the door.</p><p>"Vanitas?!" Ventus shouted as the door was opening. He opened his eyes to see the bedroom in front of him. Much to his surprise there was a lamp that was turned on. Ventus didn't think that there was any electricity running in the building. Someone was sitting on the edge of the bed.</p><p>Ventus took a few steps forward as he stared at the person in front of him. He then he froze up.</p><p>It was Vanitas.</p><p>Vanitas was sitting on the edge of the bed. He stared at Ventus with wide, confused eyes. He leaned forward slightly.</p><p>"Ventus?" he asked, as if he was uncertain that Ventus was really there.</p><p>A second later without any words Ventus jumped at Vanitas, and wrapped his arms around him. It really was Vanitas. Of course though he did look older… since he had been 14 years, but Ventus knew it was really him.</p><p>"Vanitas!" Ventus said as he began to cry. He couldn't stop his emotions from pouring out. Here he was with his best friend, who he hadn't seen for 14 years. The friend he thought was dead for 14 years. He was still alive and well. Ventus had never been more relieved in his entire life.</p><p>"Ven…" Vanitas said, clearly shocked and surprised from the random hug. "What the… Why are you here?"</p><p>Ventus tried to speak through his cries, but it was already beginning to be hard to speak. "I… I c-came to… find y-you. I-I came… to s-save you."</p><p>Vanitas grumbled. "Well you're a little late for that." He then tried to shove Ventus of from him. "And get off me already! I can't believe after all these years you are still such a cry baby."</p><p>Ventus looked up at Vanitas with his blurry, tear-stained eyes. "B-But… I th-thought you were… d-dead. I haven't… s-seen you in f-fourteen years."</p><p>Vanitas scowled as he looked away. "Yeah? So what? It took you fourteen years to finally get some courage to come into this place. You never once tried to come back here after I ran in."</p><p>Ventus wiped away his tears as he stared at Vanitas. He knew from his childhood, Vanitas would sometimes be a bit rude or harsh, but this felt way harsher than he remembered. Though it had been 14 years, Vanitas could have very well changed. But still… something felt colder about Vanitas.</p><p>"Why… Why didn't you come back though? W-Why did you stay here all these years? We all worried about you. I… I missed you."</p><p>Vanitas whipped his head back to Ventus. He grabbed Ventus by the collar of his shirt and pulled him closer. "You don't think I <em>tried</em> to leave?! You think I <em>wanted</em> to stay here?!"</p><p>"Vani…" Ventus said, trying to find the words to say next, but he couldn't figure out anything.</p><p>"You know, if you had not been such a scaredy-cat I probably wouldn't be stuck here," Vanitas said as he let go of Ventus's shirt collar.</p><p>Ventus bit his lip. It hurt him to hear Vanitas say that. He figured that Vanitas must have been holding a grudge towards him after all these years. "I'm sorry Vani…"</p><p>"Ugh… Don't be sorry idiot. I can't believe it took you this long to stop being so scared."</p><p>"I didn't think you were still alive… until Roxas told me he saw you."</p><p>Vanitas raised an eyebrow. "Roxas?"</p><p>"He's my younger brother," Ventus answered.</p><p>"So that was the kid who was here before…" Vanitas mumbled. "Can't believe you are a big brother. I never thought you'd be good brother material… you know with you being such a scaredy-cat."</p><p>Ventus wanted to chuckle a little. That sounded more like the Vanitas he was used to, a little rude, but still caring. But this was not the place to sit and catch up...though Ventus knew he had to tell Vanitas one thing right away.</p><p>"You're a big brother too."</p><p>"What?" Vanitas asked, almost sounding surprised.</p><p>"Did you forget? You told me all those years ago that you were going to be a big brother."</p><p>Vanitas sighed. "No… I didn't forget. I just didn't think about it." Vanitas paused as he gathered his thoughts. "Little brother or sister?"</p><p>"Brother, and he is friends with Roxas," Ventus said with a smile.</p><p>"Well what do you know… small world."</p><p>"Yeah it really is. You really gotta meet him," Ventus said, hoping that Vanitas would want to come along. He still had no idea why Vanitas had been here all these years, but he was going to bring Vanitas back.</p><p>"Yeah right...Just get out of here already before you get stuck here too. I… I don't want to see your stupid face again," Vanitas said as he looked away again.</p><p>Ventus felt a stinging pain in his heart at those words. Vanitas was so cold now. Whether it was just being here for all those years or if it was something else, Ventus hated to see Vanitas act that way.</p><p>"Vani…" Ventus spoke again as he placed a hand on Vanitas's shoulder. He had to try to say something. He wasn't going to leave his best friend again.</p><p>Suddenly the temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees. It now felt noticeably colder in the room.</p><p>"<em><strong>Well… What do we have here?"</strong></em> a dark, ominous, demonic, voice asked. "<em><strong>A friend of yours Vanitas?"</strong></em></p><p>Ventus looked around the room, but couldn't find the source of the voice. Vanitas's eyes widened though as he stared off at the wall across from him. "Ven… Get out of here… Now."</p><p>"But Vani…I'm not leaving you."</p><p>"No Ven! You need to get out of here!" Vanitas shouted as he turned towards Ventus again He gripped one of Ventus's arms. "You need to try to leave, right now!" Vanitas stood up and pulled Ventus up with him.</p><p>"Then come with me! Let's get out of here together," Ventus said as he took hold of Vanitas arm and tried to pull him along. Vanitas though did not move from where he stood.</p><p>"Ven… I can't."</p><p>"Yes you can Vani. Come on, let's go already!" Ventus said as he tried to pull Vanitas again but Vanitas just yanked his hand back.</p><p>"Ven! Listen to me. I literally CAN'T leave! That's part of the curse. I can't leave the mansion… and if you don't hurry… you'll be trapped here too."</p><p>Ventus looked at Vanitas. He saw that Vanitas seemed serious about what he was saying. Ventus almost couldn't believe it. The curse of the mansion was real. It didn't take people away… it trapped them.</p><p>"<em><strong>Don't be so rude Vanitas,"</strong></em> the voice chuckled. "<em><strong>It's been a long time since we have had a… guest here."</strong></em></p><p>Ventus shuddered at the way the voice said 'guest'. Whatever this voice was… it was clearly evil. Ventus had a feeling whomever or whatever it was must be the one who trapped everyone who entered the mansion.</p><p>Ventus was snapped out of his thoughts as he felt Vanitas shove him out of the bedroom. "Get moving already. Stop being an idiot and run!"</p><p>"But... What about you though?" Ventus asked as he turned around, slowly backing away from Vanitas.</p><p>"I'll… I'll be fine. I've been here all these years after all. Just… please… get out of here. <em>He</em> will be here any minute… and if you don't hurry…" Vanitas closed his eyes as he shuddered. He took in a sharp, deep breath before he continued. "Just go…Please Ven."</p><p>Ventus wanted to ask what Vanitas was going to say, but he knew he had to get out of here. Ventus nodded at Vanitas and took off running towards the front of the mansion. Hoping he could make it in time. Hoping he could get away from… whatever that voice belonged to.</p><hr/><p>
  <em>Back to Roxas's side </em>
</p><p>Roxas climbed over the gate and headed to the doors of the mansion, which were already open. That meant Ventus was already inside. Roxas stepped inside and stared looking around. He scolded himself for not bringing his flashlight back with him as he stumbled around in the dark room. Though since he didn't have the flashlight, his eyes were adjusting much better. He started his way up the stairs when he heard a voice.</p><p>"You… came back." It was Namine's voice!</p><p>Roxas spun around to see her standing right behind him. She looked at him with concerned eyes.</p><p>"Yeah I did. I came to find my brother… and also maybe get some answers about this place," Roxas answered.</p><p>"You want to know about this place?" Namine asked, seeming puzzled by his statement.</p><p>"Yes. I want to know what the deal is with this place. Is it really cursed?"</p><p>"If you want to know… come with me," Namine said as she held out her hand.</p><p>Roxas took a step back, not wanting to trust this random girl out of the blue. "Where would we be going?"</p><p>"Someplace in the mansion where it is safe to talk. Please… we must hurry," Namine said, still holding out her hand.</p><p>Roxas took a deep breath as he stepped closer to Namine. "All alright… if you say so."</p><p>Roxas reached out and held Namine's hand. A bright flash of light surrounded them, causing Roxas to close his eyes. When he opened them again, they were someplace else. The room they were in now was brightly lit and completely white. The floor, walls, ceiling and even the furniture were all white. There wasn't a whole lot of furniture though. There was one large table in the center, a dresser off on one wall and a bed next to another. Drawings were strewn throughout the entire room though. Some on the table and others taped to the walls.</p><p>"Where are we?" Roxas asked as he looked around.</p><p>"This is my room in the mansion," Namine answered.</p><p>"This room is in the mansion?" Roxas asked as he walked over to the large window in the room. He pulled back the curtains and peared outside. It was obvious that he was on the second story of the mansion now. He could see the whole courtyard of the mansion from where he was.</p><p>"Whoa wait a minute… if this is your room and there are lights in here. How come I couldn't see this room lit from outside?" Roxas asked as he looked at Namine.</p><p>Namine sighed as she sat down in one of the chairs at the table. "The magic that flows over this mansion. It makes it look that way from the outside."</p><p>"But… Why did you bring me here? Why couldn't we have talked in the lobby?"</p><p>"Because…" Namine paused for a moment, looking as if she was afraid to speak. "Because <em>he</em> can't enter this room."</p><p>Roxas found himself wanting to ask more questions, so he sat himself down at the other end of the table. "Who is this that you keep talking about? Why can't he enter this room?"</p><p>"I used… my magic so he could never enter here. And he...he is the owner of this mansion."</p><p>Roxas gasped. "The owner?"</p><p>Namine nodded. "The one who… who created the curse of this mansion. The one who has cursed all of us…"</p><p>"<em>All of us?"</em> Roxas thought. "<em>Are there other people here besides Namine and Vanitas? Are all the people who entered here all just living here or something?"</em></p><p>Roxas finally found his next question to ask. "Why don't any of you just leave this place?"</p><p>Namine took in a deep breath before she started to speak, she still seemed rather nervous speaking about the subject. "We can't leave...the curse won't let us."</p><p>Finally Roxas was getting somewhere with all of this. "Namine… Please tell me just what the curse is."</p><p>Namine hesitated as she seemed to be thinking it all over. Finally she slowly nodded. "Besides keeping us here, part of the curse… it… it takes away… our hearts."</p><p>Roxas blinked a few times, confused at what he just heard. "It… takes away your heart?"</p><p>"I'm sorry. It's hard to explain. But the owner implements the curse by taking away our hearts… though really what he is taking away is the embodiment of our heart that holds our true emotions."</p><p>Roxas sat quietly as he listened to Namine explain. All of this was rather confusing, but he was finally learning more about the mansion and the curse.</p><p>"The other part of the curse is the one that won't let us leave. Without our hearts... we are unable to get past the front gate or any exit. The magic of the curse prevents that."</p><p>"Um…" Roxas said, speaking up. "What do you mean though...with the owner taking away your 'true emotions'?"</p><p>Namine lowered her head. "We can no longer feel emotions. Again… it is a bit hard to explain. We may display emotions from time to time… We may laugh or seem to get angry... but we never can feel those emotions. If you were to cry because you were sad, you would feel that sadness in your heart. You would get all worked up because you are sad. But us… we may show tears in our eyes… but it doesn't go any further than that because we can't <em>feel</em> the sadness anymore."</p><p>"Oh...I'm sorry to hear that," Roxas said, feeling sympathy for all those who had been trapped in the mansion. That meant that Vanitas was the same way. That explained why he had been here all this time. Suddenly a different question came to mind. "Do you know though… why the original owner of this mansion…I mean the name…Why is it blurred out from all the newspapers?"</p><p>Namine sighed. "That's because of me. He has me use my magic to practically erase him from all of that. Though not everything about him is gone..."</p><p>"Why would he have you do that?"</p><p>Namine shook her head. "I don't know…"</p><p>"Wait a minute!" Roxas said, recalling what Namine had said just before. "Do you mean that the one who traps you all here… is the original owner of this mansion?!"</p><p>Namine nodded, but said nothing more.</p><p>"But how is that possible? He lived over two hundred years ago!"</p><p>"He… He gave himself into the dark magics. Using those dark magics he was able to make himself basically immortal."</p><p>Roxas leaned forward, placing his hands on the table. "Who is he though? Please tell me Namine."</p><p>Namine closed her eyes and she answered. "Ansem…"</p><p>Roxas was about to ask her more when she began to shudder. "He's… He's back." Namine quickly stood up and walked over to Roxas. "I need to get you out of here now."</p><p>"What? Why?"</p><p>"If I don't get you out now… he will get you as well. Your brother...i-it's too late for him."</p><p>"What?!" Roxas shouted. "Can't you do something? Can't you also save him?!"</p><p>Namine shrunk back and shook her head vigorously. She looked like she was terrified. "I'm sorry. I can't… He… Ansem already knows your brother is here. He doesn't know you're here though."</p><p>"Where is Ventus?" Roxas asked.</p><p>"He should be in the lobby by now...the doors are already locked though. If you want to get out of here safely, we'll have to wait."</p><p>Roxas sighed. This wasn't going the way he had hoped. He thought he could easily get his answers, find Ventus and Vanitas, and get out of there. But now… Ventus was going to be trapped. "Isn't there someway you can sneak me down there? Maybe we can try to save Ven."</p><p>Namine shook her head. "No… it's too dangerous. If I were to teleport us out to the courtyard, Ansem would see that and suspect something. The only thing I could do is have you be invisible down in the lobby… if… if you wanted to see… how the curse happens…"</p><p>Roxas frowned. He wanted to get frustrated and angry at Namine for not being able to do anything. But he saw that whomever Ansem was… it made Namine look afraid and distraught. He took in a deep breath, to try and suppress his anger. Finally he spoke again. "Fine… take me down there. You… You can get me out after that… right?"</p><p>"Yes… I should be able to."</p><p>"Then let's go," Roxas said. As much as he didn't want to see if the curse was real, he felt he needed one last thing to confirm all of this was really happening. He wanted to see that the curse was really and it wasn't everyone playing a joke on it. But if it was true… that meany Ventus was going to be trapped here. Roxas really didn't like the thought of that. But now he had some more information on this place at least… maybe… just maybe he could find a way to break the curse.</p><p>Namine took hold of Roxas's hands and the bright light returned again. "You'll be invisible to everyone, but me. But you still need to be quiet. And then once Ansem is gone again… I will be able to get you out of here."</p><p>The light grew bright and then faded away just as quickly as it had come. Roxas opened his eyes to see that they were back in the lobby. Also in the lobby was Ventus, who was frantically trying to open the front doors.</p><p>"Vanitas! Help me open the doors! Come on!" Ventus shouted to Vanitas, who was standing at the bottom of the staircase.</p><p>"They won't open Ven…" Vanitas looked down at the ground and sighed. "I'm sorry."</p><p>Darkness then filled in the center of the room. Ventus turned around and stared as the darkness began to take form. Within seconds a monstrous creature had come out from the darkness. It was hard but it must have been at least eight feet tall. It was a creature that looked like it was made up of strange muscles. It somewhat looked like a humanoid-type body. It had small yellow glowing eyes, sharp teeth, and long black antennas, there were two in front and four in back. The creature had long arms, but no legs. It has a wisp that seemed like a tail as it hovered above the ground.</p><p>The most interesting part of the creature was the large hole in its torso. The hole was in the shape of a heart that a child would draw. The creature als had strange bandages wrapped around its face, neck and chest. It was completely black except for a little blue on its forehead and inside the heart-shaped hole.</p><p>"<em>This...is this Ansem?"</em> Roxas asked himself, remember Namine said that the owner of the mansion had given into dark magic. "<em>Did he somehow transform himself into that thing?"</em> Roxas wanted to ask Namine, since she stood quietly besides him, but he knew he shouldn't talk. Not with the creature… or Ansem right in the room.</p><p>Ventus was pinned up against the door, completely terrified by the demon-like creature in front of him.</p><p>"<em><strong>Welcome to my mansion,"</strong></em> Ansem said. "<em><strong>We haven't had a visitor in such a long time."</strong></em></p><p>"U-Unlock the doors! Let me out!" Ventus shouted at Ansem.</p><p>Ansem chuckled. It was a dark and demonic chuckle, one that suited the appearance he had very well. "<em><strong>I'm afraid I can't let you leave. You belong to this mansion now. You belong to me."</strong></em></p><p>Ansem raised a hand and darkness formed around Ventus. Darkness wrapped around him like vines or chains and pulled him closer to Ansem. Ventus struggled, but the darkness held him tightly.</p><p>Roxas could feel his heart racing. He wanted to try to do something, but he had no idea what. And he figured whatever he would try would probably result in both him and Ventus getting trapped here.</p><p>"Please!" Ventus cried out. "Let me go!"</p><p>Ansem growled as he waved his hand again, causing Ventus to be lifted up in the air.</p><p>"<em><strong>You entered my mansion. This is your fate now, you cannot leave."</strong></em></p><p>Ansem held out one of his hands as darkness swirled around it. In the next moment he plunged his hand into Ventus's chest. Right where he heart was. He didn't seem to stab Ventus's chest though, it looked like the hand right when through, not causing any blood to form.</p><p>Roxas covered his ears as Ventus let out a shriek of pain. Ventus's eyes were wide as he screamed again. He continued to cry out until Ansem pulled his hand back out. Once he did, Ventus's eye's shut as his whole body went slack. The darkness around him faded and he dropped to the floor with a thud. He didn't move, but he was breathing slowly.</p><p>In Ansem's hand now seemed to be a glowing light. Roxas squiented to see it wasn't just a light, it seemed to be in the shape of a cartoon heart. It floated above Ansem's hand until darkness covered it and when the darkness cleared, it was gone.</p><p>Ansem looked over at Vanitas, who was staring wide-eyed at Ventus's limp body. He chuckled again. "<em><strong>Don't be so… upset Vanitas. You should be… happy your friend has joined us now."</strong></em></p><p>Vanitas didn't say anything nor did he take his gaze off of Ventus.</p><p>Ansem looked over at Namine, who stiffened up from his gaze. "<em><strong>Namine see to it that he gets settled, I shall return to my business."</strong></em></p><p>"Yes… master," Namine said as she lowered her head.</p><p>Ansem had darkness form around him and he was gone in the next second. Roxas still stood there, still in shock from what he had just witnessed. He was about to call out to his brother, when Vanitas beat him to it.</p><p>"Ven!" Vanitas ran over to where Ventus laid. He placed his hands under Ventus's body, and held him up slightly in his arms. "I'm sorry...This… This was all my fault." He muttered aloud.</p><p>"Roxas," Namine whispered, drawing his attention away from the other two. "I can get you out of here now."</p><p>Roxas opened his mouth to say something, but he couldn't find any words to come out. So he just closed his mouth and nodded.</p><p>"It would be best if you didn't return… I don't want Ansem to also get you too. But…" Namine looked Roxas directly in his eyes. "Please… if you can find a way to break the curse. Please help us. I don't know what it is… but I know there must be some way to save us."</p><p>"I'll try…" Roxas said, finding his voice.</p><p>"Good luck," Namine said as she waved her hand and Roxas began to float again. He heard the doors open and he was sent back outside. In a moment he was visible again and back on the ground just outside of the mansion.</p><p>Roxas didn't take any time to stand and gawk, he turned around and ran as fast as he could back home. He had to tell the others what had happened. He had to find out more about this Ansem guy. He had to try to break the curse and save his brother and everyone else.</p><hr/><p>Meanwhile back in the mansion, Namine closed the doors once she saw Roxas run off. She turned around to find Vanitas still holding an unconscious Ventus. Vanitas had his forehead resting against Ventus's. He was holding his dear friend tightly.</p><p>"Vanitas, are you okay?"</p><p>Vanitas raised his head, revealing tears in his eyes, though he didn't actually look sad. He wasn't able to feel sadness. He could only look sad.</p><p>"I… I want to be able to feel again. I want to feel true emotions again," Vanitas muttered.</p><p>"I know… We all do," Namine agreed as she placed a hand on Vanitas's shoulder.</p><p>Vanitas looked back down at Ventus. "I want to actually feel happy to be seeing Ven again… and I also want to feel sad that he...that he is trapped just like the rest of us. I want to tell him how sorry I am, and actually feel sorry."</p><p>Namine wrapped her arms around Vanitas, trying to give him a comforting hug, though she knew it really didn't help. She could hug him all she wanted, but the feeling of warmth and comfort would never come. The only thing they had, was the never ending emptiness that resided inside them ever since Ansem took away their hearts.</p><p>Namine wanted to have hope that they would one day be free, but she couldn't even feel something like that. Even if she couldn't actually feel hopeful, she wanted to believe that Roxas would be able to help them. Some way, somehow he would find a way to break the curse and they would all get their hearts back and be free.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So there is our big baddie. It's Ansem!! Hope you all enjoyed!!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Roxas ran as fast as he could back towards his house, not once stopped to catch his breath. By the time he reached the front door, he felt completely exhausted and even a little dizzy. He wasn't just tired from the running… but what he had just witnessed was still burning in his mind. Every time he thought of it, he felt uneasy. It was a horrific sight he wished he had never witnessed.</p><p>Ventus's heart being ripped out by that demonic creature that apparently was Ansem.</p><p>Ventus was now trapped in the mansion.</p><p>And it was all Roxas's fault.</p><p>Roxas knew it was all his fault. If he hadn't been so curious about the mansion then Ventus wouldn't have gotten trapped there. Everything would be fine and Roxas would be able to enjoy the next several days with his friends. But now he had to find a way to break the curse of the mansion and save Ventus. Roxas hoped that destroying the curse would actually return everyone's hearts.</p><p>Roxas opened the front door and stumbled inside, his head aching and his vision had become slightly blurry.</p><p>"Roxas?!" Kairi shouted with concern. "Are you okay?"</p><p>"I'm… I'm fine…" Roxas muttered as the room swirled around him. His legs no longer had the strength to support him and he began to fall to the floor. Just before he hit the ground though, he felt the hands of his friends grab hold of him. Sora and Riku now held onto him and they led him over to the kitchen table to sit down.</p><p>"Roxas?" Kairi asked as she placed a hand on Roxas's cheek. "You look pale. What… happened?" Kairi looked worried as she waited for Roxas to answer.</p><p>Roxas tried to speak. He tried to tell them what had happened and what he learned, but barely any words came out. "I...I was...Ventus...he… he was…" Roxas's head started to hurt again as he tried to process everything. Roxas let out a frustrated sigh as he placed his hands on his head.</p><p>"Hey, take it easy," Riku said as he placed a hand on Roxas's back. "You seem pretty tired and it is late. How about we all try to sleep and you can tell us what happened in the morning."</p><p>"But Ventus… he's… he's still at the mansion," Roxas finally said. Then another thought occurred to him. "And I didn't tell Pence to close the gates…I need to tell him he can close them… for now."</p><p>"No I agree you need some sleep," Sora said. "You look like you really need it. One of us will call Pence for you okay?"</p><p>"But…" Roxas said and then sighed. "Fine… I'll give you his number."</p><p>Roxas slowly started to stand up, but the room began to spin again. Roxas fell back down into his seat and closed his eyes, hoping the dizziness would go away.</p><p>"Hmm. Kairi, you can call Pence. Sora and I will help Roxas upstairs," Riku said as he and Sora held Roxas stand up.</p><p>Roxas wanted to refuse their help, but he knew that they were being helpful and he did need it. Riku and Sora helped Roxas upstairs to his bedroom, which by that point he felt well enough to be on his own. He went to get dressed and ready for bed once he felt he wasn't as dizzy.</p><p>The rest of their time awake was fairly quiet. Kairi had called Pence to tell him to close the gates, but did not let him know what had happened at the mansion. Soon Roxas laid in his bed, with his friends in their sleeping bags on the floor of his room. Roxas stared off at the ceiling, thinking he would never get to fall asleep after what happened. But before he knew it his mind slowly became hazy and his eyes became heavy. He was fast asleep within minutes.</p><hr/><p>Meanwhile back at the mansion Vanitas still sat on the floor of the mansion's lobby. He still had Ventus, who was still asleep, cradled in his arms. Namine sat next to him, checking over Ventus with her magic to make sure he was doing all right.</p><p>"How's...How's he doing?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"He is doing fine. He should awaken soon," Namine replied.</p><p>Vanitas sighed as he looked down at Ventus. His face was calm and relaxed looking as he slept. "I can't believe how peaceful he looks right now…"</p><p>"Isn't that how he is though? From what you've told me about him?" Namine asked.</p><p>Vanitas nodded as he made the sound of a small chuckle, though there was no smile on his face. "Yeah he's always been like that. He could be a scaredy-cat at times, but he was the friendliest little sunshine boy you could ever know. But now…" Vanitas trailed off as he closed his eyes.</p><p>Footsteps coming from the second floor were soon heard approaching. It sounded like it was more than one person heading down the stairs.</p><p>"What was with all the comotion earlier?" one voice asked. "We heard shouting and screaming from all the way down the hall." There was a pause as the footsteps suddenly stopped right next to Vanitas. "Oh… That's why.</p><p>Vanitas looked up to see two adults now standing next to him. They were only a few years older than him, but he had known them ever since he had become trapped in the mansion. They were the first two friends he made at the mansion; a spiky haired redhead named Lea, and his best friend, a long-haired, blue-haired guy named Isa.</p><p>Both Isa and Lea looked at Vanitas holding Ventus for a moment before Lea decided to speak up. "I assume he… is your friend Ventus?"</p><p>Vanitas nodded. "Yeah… took him fourteen years to finally come to try and save me. He finally learned to stop being scared I guess."</p><p>"But now he is trapped like the rest of us. His heart and emotions taken away," Isa commented, his expression dull and completely deprived of any emotion.</p><p>Lea narrowed his eyes at Isa. "Not helpful."</p><p>Isa shrugged casually, as if what he said was nothing serious. "I am just stating what it is."</p><p>Lea continued to stare at Isa, contemplating what to say next when Ventus began to stir slightly.</p><p>Namine stood up. "We should get him to a room now...before he wakes up."</p><p>Vanitas also stood up, continuing to carry Ventus. "Yeah…The room next to mine, we'll put him there. But…" Vanitas paused for a moment. "I… I don't know if I want to be there when he wakes up."</p><p>Lea placed a hand on Vanitas's shoulder and gave him a serious gaze. "You should be there though. He's your friend. He'll need someone he knows to be by his side… You know, to help him through understanding it all."</p><p>Isa rolled his eyes as he scoffed. "I never see the point in doing that. It's not like he will <em>feel</em> thankful for you just standing there pretending to be comforting."</p><p>Vanitas ignored Isa's bluntly cold comment, as he had done many times before and started to walk up the stairs. Namine followed closely behind Vanitas, leaving Lea and Isa to converse with each other.</p><p>"Can't you ever go one day without making some rude comment?" Lea asked.</p><p>Isa stared at Lea, with his emotionless eyes. "I don't see how I am really being rude since none of you actually <em>feel</em> hurt by my words."</p><p>Lea let out a long sigh as he crossed his arms. "Let's just head back already… The others will think we are slacking off again."</p><p>"Very well, though between us, you are the only one to really slack off."</p><p>"Well I can't say what we do is very fun or engaging," Lea muttered before the two walked back up the stairs and down the opposite hallway Vanitas and Namine had gone down.</p><p>Vanitas and Namine soon arrived at the empty room next to Vanitas's. They entered and placed Ventus down on the bed just as he was beginning to stir around more. Vanitas took his eyes off Ventus as he sat down at the end of the bed.</p><p>"I don't even know how to try to explain it all to him…" Vanitas said as he stared off at the wall.</p><p>"You can do it. Explain it to him like how you did it with me... " Namie started to say before her eyes shifted to the floor.</p><p>Vanitas shook his head. "That's different though. You were a child… Ven's an adult. It's still hard to understand either way. I guess I'll figure out something…"</p><p>"Do you want to be left alone with him?" Namine asked.</p><p>"No… Maybe. I'm still not sure."</p><p>"I'll stay for a little bit then. How about that? I do… need to make sure he awakes properly after all," Namine said as she cast a glance at Ventus before she sat down next to Vanitas.</p><p>"Thanks Namine," Vanitas said as he placed a hand on Namine's head and smiled a little. The smile didn't last very long and soon it faded away back to Vanitas's normal expression.</p><p>Ventus groaned as his eyes slowly started open. Namine jumped off the bed and went closer to Ventus. She held out a hand over him, her finger tips glowing with magic. She closed her eyes as she sensed how Ventus was doing as he woke up. She then lowered her hand and watched along with Vanitas as Ventus woke back up. A moment later he sat up, blinking his eyes as he looked around the room.</p><p>His eyes quickly glanced at Namine before they fell over to Vanitas. "Vani…? What… What happened?" Ventus asked, seeming a little spaced out.</p><p>"What do you last remember?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"Last I remember was… I was at the doors and then… that creature showed up and… and…" Ventus trailed off as he placed his hand over his chest. He breathed deeply as he squeezed his shirt. He seemed to look like he was going to panic or be distressed, but no sign of those emotions ever came. Ventus just seemed to look a little confused but nothing else.</p><p>"He got you Ven…" Vanitas explained as he placed his hand on his friend's shoulder. He tried to look as sympathetic as he could, though over the years he forgot what something like that could even look like. He tried his best though. He had to try his best… for Ventus. "Ansem… took away your heart… your emotions. You're... under the curse now."</p><p>Ventus's eyes widened as his mouth fell open slightly. "I'm...under the curse?" Ventus placed his hand over his chest again, right over where his heart was. "But if he took my heart… why do I…"</p><p>"It's not the physical heart he takes," Namine cut in. "It's the heart that is the embodiment of our...true emotions."</p><p>Ventus looked over at Namine, seeming to be trying to process her explanation. Finally he spoke up again. "You're… that girl."</p><p>"My name is Namine. It's nice to finally meet you Ventus," Namine said as she held out her hand for Ventus to shake.</p><p>Ventus took her hand and greeted her back. "Nice to meet you too, but what do you mean by 'finally'?"</p><p>"Vanitas has told me a lot about you before," Namine said as she looked over at Vanitas, who was being rather quiet now.</p><p>Ventus's attention was drawn back to Vanitas. Vanitas also looked right back at Ventus, their eyes locking onto one another. Though neither of them said a word, the look in their eyes showed that they wanted to say something… they just didn't know what. Namine caught on to how the two were looking at each other so she stood up and headed towards the door.</p><p>"I'll let you two catch up with each other now," Namine said before she walked out of the room.</p><p>Vanitas opened his mouth to try to say something but he immediately closed it in the next second. He had no idea what he wanted to talk to Ventus about. It had been so many years there was a lot to say. But before he could think of something to say, Ventus spoke first.</p><p>"So you really have been trapped here for fourteen years?"</p><p>Vanitas slowly nodded as he lowered his head. "Yeah… I have."</p><p>Before Vanitas knew it he was embraced by Ventus again. Ventus held him tightly as he rested his head on Vanitas's shoulder. Vanitas stared for a moment, slightly confused by Ventus's action.</p><p>"Ven? What are you doing?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"I wanted to give you another hug," Ventus muttered. "I'm sorry you've been trapped here so long. I'm sorry I didn't do anything to try to save you before.</p><p>"But Ven…" Vanitas sighed. "Hugs… They don't mean anything. I mean… We can't feel sympathy or anything like that. A hug won't help me feel better when I can't feel at all."</p><p>Ventus shifted slightly but did not pull away from the hug. "I know… I think I am beginning to understand now. But… just because neither of us feel anything from this hug… doesn't mean I can't give you one just 'cause."</p><p>Vanitas's eyes widened at Ventus's statement. He couldn't believe he had never thought of it like that before. Well… he had, but it had been many years since he had ever thought something like that. Vanitas made a small smile as he brought up his hands to wrap around Ventus. Though there was no emotion in his heart that would make him feel happy or comforted from the hug, he knew that it was nice just to have a hug like this. A hug from Ventus, his best friend from childhood, was the best kind of hug Vanitas thought he could have right now.</p><p>"So…" Vanitas started as they both continued their embrace. "How have you been all this time? Before… you know…"</p><p>"I was all right I guess. Though I never forgot about that night… " Ventus's hold seemed to loosen slightly.</p><p>"Neither did I… Something like that at the age I was… It was awful."</p><p>"I had nightmares for months. I was so scared… I was so terrified about what had happened to you. I never fully recovered from that night. Even to this day I felt like that if I thought about back then," Ventus explained. He didn't know why, but explaining everything now felt so much easier than it ever did before. He realized that probably had to do with having no emotions. With no emotions to cause him fear or distress, when thinking of the terrible memories, everything felt easier. There was now nothing holding him back from talking about it."But now I don't feel like that… I guess that is one upside to all of this."</p><p>"If you say so…" Vanitas muttered.</p><p>Finally Ventus pulled back from the hug and looked up at Vanitas. "What happened? I mean what have you been doing here since you were trapped? I assume you haven't just been sitting around all this time."</p><p>Vanitas looked at Ventus and then nodded. "Yeah...There have been things I've done around here. Not a whole lot of stuff...but enough to pass the time I guess."</p><p>Ventus sat up straighter as he sat closer to Vanitas. "Can you tell me about it? I guess I am a little curious. It has been fourteen years after all, we have a lot to catch up on."</p><p>Vanitas smiled slightly. "All right… I guess I can tell you about it. But it's not all that exciting."</p><p>"Just tell me Vani. I want to know."</p><p>"Okay… But I'll tell you in the morning. It's late now and we all need sleep."</p><p>Ventus sighed a little. "I don't know how I'll fall asleep after all this."</p><p>"Ah you'll be able to. You always could fall asleep rather quickly," Vanitas said.</p><p>"Heh… Yeah. Well…" Ventus's eyes waved off from Vanitas for a moment before he looked back at him. "Goodnight Vanitas. I know the circumstances aren't great… but I am glad to see you again."</p><p>Vanitas huffed as he stood up. "Glad. Very funny."</p><p>Ventus frowned a little, realizing Vanitas had spent a far longer time without his emotion than he had. Being like that for fourteen years seemed to have hardened him a bit. Made him a bit colder and distant. But that didn't change Ventus's view.</p><p>"Even if I can't feel glad… I know that's what I want to feel right now."</p><p>Vanitas smiled a tiny bit again. "Yeah… Me too. Night Ven."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Throughout the entire night Roxas turned back and forth in his bed. He may have been asleep, but his mind in his dream was restless. His dream was plaguing him terribly, but he couldn't seem to wake up from it. It was worse than a dream… It was a nightmare.</p><p>He had found himself running through the mansion, or what he thought was the mansion. He still hadn't gotten a good enough look around, but his mind was creating the images for him. He was running quickly, looking for Ventus, but he was also being chased. He was being chased by the demonic creature that was Ansem. Roxas kept running and running, turning down one corner and then another. But even though he kept running, he could hear the sinister, unsettling laughter coming from Ansem.</p><p>Roxas ran around another corner and saw that one of the doors in the hallway was open! Roxas picked up pace and bolted inside the room and slammed the door shut. He made sure to lock it as he didn't want Ansem to find him.</p><p>Roxas dropped to his knees as he caught his breath. His heart was racing and sweat was running down his head. He didn't know if he could run anymore after this, but he had a feeling he might.</p><p>"Roxas…" a quiet voice said.</p><p>Roxas turned around to see Namine standing in the center of the room. "Namine! Are you okay?" Roxas asked as he approached Namine, but as soon as he got close she backed away.</p><p>"You need to save us."</p><p>"I'm going to try. I just gotta figure out how."</p><p>"Please save us Roxas," Namine said as she took another step back.</p><p>"I said I am, don't worry."</p><p>"You need to save up. Please save us," Namine repeated.</p><p>"I-I am!" Roxas shouted. "Just give me time to find out how!"</p><p>Roxas reached forward towards Namine, but as soon as his hand got near her, she vanished. Roxas blinked in confusion as he looked around the room. "Namine?!"</p><p>Suddenly a moment of realization came over Roxas. He was still just a kid. He wasn't even fourteen yet. How was he supposed to save a bunch of people trapped in a mansion by a curse? He had no magic of his own or any special powers. How was he supposed to break the curse? How was he supposed to deal with Ansem? Ansem was a former man who seemed to become a demon-like creature through dark magic.</p><p>"<em>Would the curse break if I fought him? Or… killed him? I.. I don't know if I can do that!" </em>Roxas shouted in his mind.</p><p>The room around him started to warp and change. Everything began to spin as Roxas gripped as a sharp pain stung in the back of his head. Roxas let out a yell. He was so confused, so frustrated. The fate of so many now rested on his shoulders. He wanted to save them all, he really did. But he had no idea how to do any of it, and that just made him upset.</p><p>The room around him finally stopped spinning and Roxas found himself to be back in the lobby of the mansion. He looked around, thinking at first he was alone, but then he saw something in the shadows in the far end of the room.</p><p>"W-Who's there?" Roxas asked as his voice cracked with nervousness.</p><p>Whatever or whomever it was stepped forward out of the shadows, and much to Roxas's surprise it was Ventus. He didn't say anything though. He only started at Roxas with sad eyes. Roxas started to run towards his brother when the walls and ground began to shake.</p><p>Without notice Ansem appeared behind Ventus. His small yellow eyes glowing brightly in the darkness. His dark laughter filled the room. Darkness seemed to be seeping from the ceiling and walls, closing in on the two of them.</p><p>Roxas started to move forward again. This time he would save Ventus. He would save him and they would both get out of there together. But Roxas found that he couldn't move his legs, they felt as heavy as cement. He tried to pull them forward, but it was no use, he was stuck.</p><p>Ansem was slowly getting closer to Ventus, who still just stood there doing nothing. Roxas started to panic as he shouted for Ventus to move… only he found that he had no voice. He tried to scream and shout, but not a sound came from his voice.</p><p>Roxas really started to panic now.</p><p>He was stuck.</p><p>He couldn't do anything to save Ventus.</p><p>Suddenly Ansem grabbed Ventus by his head as he lifted him off the ground. Ventus said nothing but tried to break free from Ansem. Roxas watched completely frozen in horror as Ansem plunged his hand into Ventus's back. The hand burst through the front of Ventus's chest. The large demonic hand dripping in blood. Ventus let out a terrifying scream. It was a scream full of pain and shock. It made Roxas shake with fear as he covered his ears, but he could still hear the screaming. The horrible screaming. It wouldn't stop.</p><p>A moment later Ventus's eyes rolled up as his body became completely still. The blood soaked through Ventus's shirt as Ansem pulled his hand back and carelessly threw him at Roxas's feet.</p><p>Roxas finally was able to let out a scream. He screamed and screamed at the sight of his brother.</p><p>The shock of seeing that was enough to wake him.</p><p>Roxas woke up screaming. He screamed and screamed as he began to hyperventilate. His head was throbbing and his heart was racing faster than ever before. As he screamed he heard concerned voices and arms wrapping around him. He couldn't focus who was holding him though, his head hurt too much right now.</p><p>"Roxas! Roxas are you okay?!" one voice asked.</p><p>"You gotta try to calm down. Take deep breaths," another instructed.</p><p>"Take it easy. You're going to be okay," another one said.</p><p>Roxas tried to calm down, but he couldn't stop his panicked breathing or his racing heart. His vision blurred with tears that began to streak down his face. The nightmare still lingered vividly in his head. Though he tried to remind himself Ventus wasn't actually dead, he couldn't help but fear something like that happening. He tried to take in deep breaths as he tried to push the images from his nightmare away.</p><p>The warm embrace though never let up, and that helped calm Roxas a bit more. He let out a sobbed as he buried his hands into his face.</p><p>"I-It's all my fault," Roxas sobbed.</p><p>"No. No it's not Roxas. Don't think that," the sweetest and kindest voice said.</p><p>"B-But…It's all my fault that all of this happened," Roxas mumbled before he let out another sob.</p><p>"Maybe we should call your parents to let them know what happened," one of them stated.</p><p>Roxas quickly shook his head. "No! D-Don't call them! They can't know about this. Not only w-would I be grounded for life… but I don't want them to worry about V-Ven…"</p><p>"How about we go down for breakfast then? Maybe some food will help clear your mind," one of the others said.</p><p>"Yeah…" Roxas said with a sigh, finally feeling more calm. He finally had enough attention to focus. He realized that it wasn't just one person hugging him, but all three of his friends were holding him. They hugged him, bringing forth a warm and comforting feeling. He knew his friends cared deeply about him and that helped him feel better. "And then… I can tell you guys what happened."</p><p>"Don't push yourself though if you don't feel ready to talk about it," Riku said.</p><p>"I won't, but I think I really have to tell you guys. I don't think I could keep this to myself for much longer."</p><p>"Okay, let's go downstairs then," Kairi said as she finally let go of Roxas.</p><p>The four all headed downstairs and grabbed some cereal from the cabinet. Once they were all seated with their food at the table Roxas began to tell them what happened after he ran off. He tried to explain everything the best he could, not leaving out anything. He told them everything Namine had explained to him about the curse and who was doing it. Eventually he started to explain what happened to Ventus. Chills snuck through his entire body as we recalled the horrifying event. Roxas wrapped his arms around himself as he shuddered. Though he struggled through it, he managed to tell Sora, Riku, and Kairi what Ansem did to Ventus. As soon as Roxas finished his story, his three friends stared at him with wide eyes, almost in disbelief that something like that could happen.</p><p>Kairi placed her hand over her mouth, looking like she might be sick. "That's awful!"</p><p>"Now I see why Vanitas could never return home," Sora said, a sullen expression formed across his face as he lowered his head.</p><p>"And it's all my fault Ventus is trapped there…" Roxas muttered.</p><p>"No Roxas! It's not your fault!" Kairi said, trying to persuade Roxas otherwise.</p><p>"But if it weren't for me being so curious about the place, Ventus would never have gone there!" Roxas retorted, frustrated with himself over the situation.</p><p>"If you hadn't gone though… We would have never found out Vanitas is still alive," Sora said looking up at Roxas. "I know he is trapped there… but I'm glad that he is still alive. If we can find a way to break the curse… I will finally get to met him."</p><p>"I guess… But now I know how Ventus must have felt when he first went there," Roxas said with a heavy sigh.</p><p>"It's still not your fault, it's Ansem's. If he never did what he did, then no one would have been trapped in the first place," Kairi replied.</p><p>"Yeah I know… But how do we even break a curse like that? If any of us go back to that mansion… we will just get trapped like the rest," Roxas said.</p><p>"You said Namine said the owner's name was Ansem. Did she give a last name? That could help with researching," Riku said.</p><p>Roxas was about to say yes when he realized something. Namine never had given a last name. She had only said 'Ansem' and that was it. Roxas sighed, finding out information on the guy may be harder than they thought. It was going to be especially hard since Namine said pretty much all the information about him was erased, but that meant there had to be some things left.</p><p>"No she didn't," Roxas finally answered.</p><p>"Well I am sure there haven't been a whole ton of guys in Twilight Town named Ansem. So it shouldn't be too hard to find something," Riku said as he leaned back in his chair.</p><p>"We'll start with that then. We'll look up what we can find about him and that monster he had become. Maybe there is some old history of a demon that steals people's emotions," Kairi said.</p><p>Roxas nodded before he smiled a little. "Thanks guys. I'm really glad you're here. I… I wouldn't know what to do without you."</p><p>Kairi gave Roxas a smile as he placed a hand on his arms. "We're glad to help. We wouldn't want to leave you alone to handle this."</p><p>"Sorry though that our week of fun is ruined by this," Roxas then added.</p><p>"It's fine. I'm sure we can solve this before the week is up," Sora said.</p><p>"You're our friend, so we will stand by you," Riku added.</p><p>"All right then… let's get to this," Roxas said as he stood up, with new found confidence. "We are going to find out how to solve the curse of the Twilight Manor and save everyone who is trapped there."</p><p>All three of Roxas's friends and agreed. They were going to find a way to save everyone. They would find a way to break the curse. And then everyone would be fine. Roxas took in a deep breath as he pushed the nightmare images farther away. They still haunted him and made him shudder. The image of Ventus laying bloody and dead at his feet was something that would be with him for a while. The screams Ventus had let out… the real ones he had heard back in the mansion… that was also something he could never forget. But he wasn't going to let that stop him. He couldn't let that stop him. He would find a way, he knew he would… or he really, really hoped he would.</p><hr/><p>At the mansion in the morning Ventus slowly woke up, taking in his surroundings. He was still in the mansion as he expected. Trapped like Vanitas. Trapped with no way to leave or escape. Ventus placed his hand over his chest again, he could still feel his heartbeat, but everything still was hollow and empty. This wasn't a dream or a nightmare. He was really stuck here with no emotions. But he was with Vanitas again. His closest childhood friend. Finally he had reunited with him after so long.</p><p>There was a knock suddenly on Ventus's door.</p><p>"Come in," Ventus said.</p><p>The door opened and none other than Vanitas walked in, carrying a plate of food in one hand. He walked over and sat down next to Ventus.</p><p>"You slept pretty long there. Missed breakfast and stuff… but I brought you some food," Vanitas said as he held out the plate.</p><p>Ventus thanked Vanitas before taking the plate and picking up a piece of bread. "Is it bad that I slept that long?"</p><p>"Nah… Everyone sleeps for a different amount of time on their first night since losing their heart," Vanitas explained. "Isa told me that Lea apparently slept the whole entire day after… well you know."</p><p>"Isa and Lea?" Ventus asked as he continued to eat.</p><p>"They were trapped here before me… They kind of looked after me when I got trapped," Vanitas explained as he looked off to the side. He seemed to be lost in his own thoughts for a moment before he turned back to Ventus.</p><p>"So are you going to tell me about it then? What happened all this time?"</p><p>"Yeah I know, I said I would tell you. Well as you can probably guess...it all started when those damn doors slammed shut on me…"</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>it is time for the flashback arc of this story!! Let's get right into it!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>Back 14 years ago</em>
</p><p>Vanitas was exploring around the front room of the mansion. He knew it was abandoned, but boy was the front area filled with dust, junk, and broken glass. But nevertheless it was still super cool.</p><p>"Come on already Ventus, get over here and explore this place with me," Vanitas called out to Ventus, who was still outside of the mansion.</p><p>Vanitas looked around a bit more, hoping that Ventus would come soon. He started to head towards the staircase he heard Ventus shout out to him.</p><p>"Vanitas! The doors!"</p><p>Quickly Vanitas turned around and saw that the front doors were slowly. Vanitas's eyes widened as he started running to the doors. Just as he was about to get to them they slammed shut right in front of his face. Immediately Vanitas began to push and pound on the doors. Trying to get them open. But no matter what he did, the doors did not open again. It was like they were being held closed by something.</p><p>There was an eerie sound coming from somewhere behind Vanitas, but he didn't dare look. He was beginning to be afraid. This was not what he expected.</p><p>"<em>This place is just supposed to be abandoned! Why are the doors like this?!"</em> Vanitas shouted in his thoughts. Finally after another failed attempt to get the doors open he called for Ventus. "Ventus! Get over here! Open the doors! They won't budge from inside here!" He continued to hit the doors though, hoping that they may just open up again.</p><p>"I-I'm coming!" Ventus shouted from outside.</p><p>As Vanitas waited for Ventus he heard something again from behind him. This time he turned around and looked. His mouth dropped open as he screamed. Right before him was probably the scariest creature he had ever seen. And it was staring right at him with glowing, yellow eyes.</p><p>The creature laughed as it raised its hand. Darkness swirled around Vanitas and tightened like chains. Vanitas continued to scream as he was pulled closer towards the creature. Whatever this creature was, it was terrifying. Vanitas tried to move or break from what was holding him, but it was too strong.</p><p>Vanitas tried to find words, but all that came out of him were screams of pure terror. It didn't make things any better when he was lifted off the ground by some kind of magic and now was face to face with the creature. This was the first time in Vanitas's life where he felt truly scared.</p><p>"<em><strong>Welcome to my mansion little one. I hope you enjoy your stay. I am happy to welcome you... my new guest,"</strong></em> the creature cackled in a deep, demonic voice before it plunged its hand into Vanitas's chest.</p><p>Vanitas cried out loudly as pain shouted through his entire body. It felt like his heart was burning. The room around him began to fade away as his body started to go numb. Though his body was numbing the sharp pain in his chest never seemed to cease. In the next second everything went black.</p><hr/><p>Vanitas shifted from side to side as his eyes slowly started to open. He felt as if he was laying in a soft bed. Upon opening his eyes and letting them adjust, he found that he was in a bed. But it was not the guest bed in Ventus's room. This room looked completely different. Vanitas had no idea where he was. He looked out the window to see that it was still nighttime out, but he didn't know the exact time. He couldn't seem to find a clock or anything in the room that could help give that indication.</p><p>Vanitas jumped out of the bed, feeling a bit dizzy. Something felt strange… but he couldn't figure out what. But he knew something was different about him. After looking around in the room for a bit he looked out the window more closely. He saw an old, overgrown, abandoned courtyard. The walls surrounding the courtyard looked very much like the walls of the mansion. "<em>Am I still in the mansion? I… I need to get out of here! Gotta get out of here before that monster comes back!"</em></p><p>Vanitas ran over to the door and opened it. He peered out into the hallways to make sure the monster wasn't there. Once he saw that the coast was clear he ran down the hall, hoping he was heading towards the front of the mansion. Soon he saw the staircases that lead down onto the main floor. Vanitas quickly scrambled down the closer staircase and headed towards the front doors.</p><p>"<em>Please be unlocked this time!"</em> Vanitas thought as he gave the doors a big push. Thankfully the doors opened up and there was still no sign of the monster. Vanitas took this opportunity and ran towards the front gate. He would be away from this place before he knew it! He didn't see Ventus anywhere so he figured that Ventus had run home scared.</p><p>Just as Vanitas got a few feet away from the gate, a strange glow formed in front of him. It wasn't just in front of him, but it stretched all the way across the yard. Vanitas tried to move on, but found he couldn't get past the place in the yard he was standing. He kept trying to move forward, but he could get past the glowing wall in front of him.</p><p>"What gives? What's with this?!" Vanitas shouted as he tried to hit the barrier. His hand collided with it, but it did nothing.</p><p>The air around Vanitas dropped without notice. Vanitas turned his head to look around, as if he felt someone was nearby. A voice then came out of nowhere… but it wasn't any old voice. It was the voice of the monster he had heard before.</p><p>"<em><strong>What's this now? You are trying to leave? I'm afraid you can't do that."</strong></em></p><p>"Yes I can! Just get rid of this barrier!" Vanitas shouted.</p><p>"<em><strong>You do not seem to understand. You are not allowed to leave here,"</strong></em> the monster said.</p><p>Darkness formed around Vanitas again and held him tight. Vanitas tried again to break from the darkness, but it was still pointless. The darkness wrapped around him was far too strong. Slowly, against his will he was dragged back into the mansion where the demonic creature was waiting.</p><p>Vanitas stared at the creature. He knew he should be scared and afraid of it… but for some odd reason he didn't feel like that at all. Though he knew that's what he would normal be feeling… but it was the strangest thing… he didn't feel anything.</p><p>The creature came close to Vanitas and he tried to move away, but the darkness was still tightly wrapped around him. "Stay away from me!" Vanitas shouted at the creature.</p><p>The creature laughed in response. "<em><strong>So hostile. How amusing. Perhaps this form is too much for your young mind."</strong></em></p><p>Darkness formed around the creature as it began to change. Vanitas watched with wide eyes as the creature's seemed to be shifting and changing into something else. The body started to look more human. Soon the creature had completely changed into the form of an adult man. Though he didn't look like a monster he still looked just as intimating.</p><p>He had dark skin and long silver-grey hair that reached past his shoulder and stuck out in different directions at the top. His eyes were an amber-orange that in the dark lighting looked like they were glowing. The man wore a strange outfit, the only normal bits was the dark black pants and knee cap high boots. He wore no shirt, but instead he wore two coats and an undercoat that was white and showed off his chest muscles and was double belted at stomach level. Above the undercoat was a trench coat which had a dark blueish black top half and the bottom was white it was lined with yellow at the edge seams. He wore a fanciful decorated blue and white shoulder pads that strapped onto his trench coat. The sleeves of the trench coat hugged his arms and ended underneath his white gloves that flared out.</p><p>He stood there with his arms crossed, glaring down at Vanitas. "Is this better? Perhaps now you won't look so… scared." The man's voice was still deep sounding, but no longer demonic.</p><p>"Who… Who are you?" Vanitas quietly asked. Though the man glared at him with menacing eyes, he was still not as scary as his monster form. Vanitas found a little confidence to speak up. "Why won't you let me leave?"</p><p>The man chuckled. "My name is Ansem and this is my mansion." Ansem gestured to the room around them before he took a step closer to Vanitas. "And you are my newest guest."</p><p>"Newest guest?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"Yes. All those who enter my mansion are cursed to stay here."</p><p>Vanitas gulped. "Cursed?"</p><p>Ansem chuckled again. "Yes. Once you enter the mansion, you can never leave it."</p><p>Vanitas wanted to ask something else, but he couldn't seem to think of anything else. He lowered his head as he sighed. He couldn't believe that Ventus was right… this mansion was cursed. He was never going to see his family again… he would never get to meet his little sibling. He was trapped… forever. Incoming footsteps drew Vanitas's attention to look back up. Ansem now stood directly over him.</p><p>"You don't have to… worry though. You are not alone here. You have plenty of others that are here just the same as you are. In fact… I think I hear some of them coming right now."</p><p>Vanitas listened as he could each faint talking and footsteps coming. There was soon two people walking across the second story walkway. They stopped once they saw Vanitas and Ansem.</p><p>Ansem smiled. "Ah Isa and Lea, just the two I wanted to see. As you can see we have a new guest here. I shall have you two watch over him while he adjusts to his new life. Understood?"</p><p>The people made their way down the stairs and over to Vanitas. He could now see that they looked like teenagers. Maybe just three years older than him. One of them had green eyes and short, spiky red hair that was starting to spike out in many different directions. The other had light blue eyes and blue hair that was slightly spiked up in back, but it mostly fell down a little past his jaw.</p><p>"We understand," the blue-haired boy said with an expressionless look.</p><p>The redhead though didn't say anything, he was looking over at Vanitas. It was hard to tell by his expression, but it almost looked like he looked sorry for Vanitas. The redhead was then nudged in the side by the other one. He grumbled as he directed his attention to Ansem.</p><p>"Yes sir… We'll watch the kid."</p><p>"Good. His room is room 226. Make sure he does not try to run off again," Ansem said before disappearing in a cloud of darkness.</p><p>The darkness chains disappeared around Vanitas finally. With his movement back he stretched his arms, which were now a bit sore from being constrained for so long.</p><p>"So kid, what's your name?" the redhead asked.</p><p>At first Vanitas didn't want to answer him. He was tempted to get up and run away again. But if the same thing happened as last time… there was no point.</p><p>"Vanitas…" Vanitas said as he slowly stood up.</p><p>The redhead seemed to smile a little. "Well, nice to meet you Vanitas. My name's Lea, got it memorized?" Lea pointed a finger to the side of his head while the other guy let out a groan. "And this is my friend Isa. Now come on, let's get you back to your room."</p><p>Vanitas stood where he was, not wanting to move any inch. "Why?"</p><p>"Well that's because it's late and you need your sleep…" Lea seemed to hesitate for a moment before he continued. "You really will need some sleep after tonight."</p><p>Vanitas tilted his head in confusion. "What do you mean?"</p><p>"Why don't you just explain it to him already Lea?" Isa asked. "Why don't you just say that-"</p><p>"Let's just let the kid get used to this place first!" Lea interrupted. "Explanations can come at a later time."</p><p>"I see no point in holding it off…" Isa commented. "It won't really affect him now and you know that."</p><p>Lea stared long and hard at Isa before shaking his head. "No. We will explain it tomorrow. Come on kid, follow me."</p><p>Vanitas didn't want to follow, but Lea did seem far friendlier than Ansem did. He knew that for sure. Slowly he started to walk towards Lea and Isa. Vanitas kept behind them as they all headed up the stairs and down the hall. None of them said a word, leaving an awkward air around them. But again… though Vanitas knew it should be awkward… it didn't feel awkward. Vanitas still didn't understand it...though he thought he could ask Lea or Isa later, they seemed to know something.</p><p>Soon they arrived at room 226. Vanitas stared at the open doorway and then at Isa and Lea. "Do I… really have to stay here?"</p><p>Lea sighed. "I'm afraid so…"</p><p>Vanitas was about to ask another question, but he instead let out a yawn. He suddenly felt more sleepy than he had. He then felt the hand of Lea on his head. "Well kid, looks like you are ready for sleep. We'll talk tomorrow okay?"</p><p>Vanitas swatted Lea's hand off his head before he walked into the room. "Don't touch me… and don't call me kid…"</p><p>Vanitas closed the door behind him, not waiting for a response for Lea or Isa. He walked over to the bed and flopped down on top of it. He wished that this could be a dream… but he could tell it was far too real to be a dream. He didn't have much time to think though as his mind quickly drifted off into sleep.</p><hr/><p>Vanitas woke up the next morning to light shining in through the window. Vanitas squinted as he found himself to still be in the bedroom that was in the mansion. He was truly trapped here. He got up and sat on his bed lost in his thoughts as he tried to process everything. Suddenly he realized something.</p><p>"<em>Ventus!"</em> Vanitas recalled Ventus had shouted that he was going to come and open the doors for him...but that never did happen. Ventus never came...did he? Vanitas balled up his fists as he stood up. He looked over at the pillow on the bed before he started to punch it.</p><p>"Ventus… where are you?!" he shouted as he continued to punch the pillow. He knew normally doing something like this would help him calm down… but there was still that strange… empty feeling inside him. It didn't make any sense.</p><p>"Ventus... Why… Why didn't you come save me! You stupid, scaredy-cat… Ventus why did you run away?..." Vanitas tried to push anger and passion into his words… but that never did happen. And that only confused Vanitas more.</p><p>"What are you doing kid?" a voice asked.</p><p>Vanitas turned to see Lea standing in the doorway. He hadn't even heard the door open. Vanitas looked back at the pillow, now all lumpy from being punched. "My mom told me that whenever I felt angry… I should try punching a pillow. To take my anger out… bu-but I don't understand. I.. I don't…" Vanitas trailed off, not able to find the words.</p><p>"But you don't actually <em>feel</em> angry, right?" Lea asked.</p><p>Vanitas stared at him with wide eyes, but somehow he felt that statement made sense. But there was still a lot of confusion behind it. Vanitas unclenched his fists as he sat down on the floor. "I don't understand… Why do I feel this way? Why can't I get angry or anything?"</p><p>Lea sighed as he went down to sit next to Vanitas. "Well...it's because of the curse."</p><p>"The curse?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"Yeah… You remember the scary guy Ansem right? Well he… traps us all here by taking away our emotions in our hearts."</p><p>"How can he do that though? I don't get it…" Vanitas said as he placed his hand over his chest to feel his heartbeat. His heart was still beating, but he felt nothing from it. No fear, or confusion, nothing. He only felt the emptiness inside. He did remember vaguely what had happened after the mansion doors slammed shut. Ansem held him in the air with magic and then plunged his hand into his chest. Though he knew the memory of that event was terrifying, it now brought forth no emotion at all.</p><p>"I know it sounds a bit weird… but it is the truth," Lea responded.</p><p>"So… You're trapped here too? He took your heart as well?"</p><p>Lea nodded as he lowered his head. "Yeah. I went to explore this place with my friend Isa a few years back. We were only about a year older than you… and we have been here ever since."</p><p>"Why though… Why does he do that? Why does he wanna trap us all here?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>Lea shook his head as he closed his eyes. "I don't know…" There was a pause before Lea spoke up again. "So who was this Ventus you were talking about?"</p><p>Vanitas sighed as he looked away. "He's my best friend… but he is a big scaredy-cat. He said he was going to come and help me when the doors slammed shut. But he never came… he abandoned me…"</p><p>"I'm sure he didn't mean to. Considering what happened… he must have been pretty scared."</p><p>Vanitas felt something drip from his eyes. He wiped his finger across and pulled his hand back to see tears on his finger. He was crying but he didn't actually feel like he was. "I still don't get it…Why did this happen to me…"</p><p>"I know it's hard to get used to, but… you get used to it."</p><p>"I don't want to get used to it!" Vanitas shouted, but there was no emotion truly in it. "I want to go home! I want to see Ventus again… I just… I don't like this." The tears ran down Vanitas's face, but he never began to feel truly sad. The tears meant nothing if he couldn't feel the sadness that went along with them.</p><p>In the next moment he clung onto Lea's shirt as more tears fell down his face. He kept trying and trying, but no matter what he did he couldn't feel sad. The tears just felt like they were raindrops streaming down his face. He couldn't cry or sob over what he wanted to feel… because he couldn't feel anything at all.</p><p>Vanitas felt Lea place a hand on his head. "It's okay kid. I know it's hard. Let those tears out. You'll feel better soon."</p><p>"Don't lie to him," a different voice cut in. Isa was now standing in the doorway, looking as emotionless as ever.</p><p>"I'm just trying to make him feel better," Lea responded.</p><p>Isa scoffed. "That won't do him a lot of good when he can't even <em>feel</em> anymore. It's better just directly telling him he'll spend the rest of his life without true emotions… like the rest of us."</p><p>"Isa…He's just a kid though..." Lea mumbled though he didn't say anything more after that.</p><p>"I don't see what that has to do with anything. We were just about the same age as him when we came here… and no one tried to tell us it would be all right," Isa replied coldly.</p><p>"But we're here now. Even without feelings we can be there for the kid. Just so he isn't by himself for all of this."</p><p>Vanitas scrunched up his nose. "Stop calling me kid. I am not a kid. And… I don't wanna live without my emotions…"</p><p>Lea sighed again. "Yeah I know what you mean. But even if we can't feel anymore, a lot of us still act like we can. We can still laugh at jokes and stuff because we know they are funny, even without feeling it. So don't listen to Mr. Stick in the Mud over there. He is just a big party pooper."</p><p>Vanitas couldn't help but laugh, and that's when he realized what Lea meant. He was laughing, but didn't actually feel the amusement from the joke. But the laughter still was there. He could in fact still laugh.</p><p>"I still see it as pointless," Isa commented, unaffected by Lea's joke insult. "Why bother pretending to have emotions when we actually don't?"</p><p>"Just bug off already Isa. You're not helping," Lea muttered.</p><p>"Are you two really friends?" Vanitas asked as he let go of Lea's shirt.</p><p>Lea chuckled. "Yeah we are, but Isa is just a bit rude at times. Just ignore him when he is like that. Other than that he is a good friend."</p><p>Vanitas nodded and he laughed a little again. He really wished though he could feel the fun and joy behind that laughter. He was not happy to be stuck here. He wanted to be able to go home and everything, but he realized that would never ever happen. He was now a part of the curse of the old, abandoned, mansion. Something he never originally thought to be real. But now he found out the curse was real and it was worse than just people disappearing. But, even if the circumstances seemed bad, he was at least glad, or he imagined he would be glad, that he had some new friends.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you all who have been reading this story! I hope that you enjoyed so far!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter 10</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Now we begin the flashback arc of this story!! Let's see what happened to Vanitas all those years ago.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"So would you like a tour around the mansion?" Lea asked as he stood up and stretched a little.</p><p>Vanitas shrugged. "Maybe?... I don't know…"</p><p>"Well you probably are hungry right? We should get you some food," Lea replied.</p><p>At that moment Vanitas felt his stomach grumble. He was far more hungry than he thought he was. Vanitas still wasn't too happy about the situation he was in, but he could tell that Lea meant well. Without much other choice, Vanitas decided to trust him. Isa on the other hand… Vanitas still was not sure what to think of him. He was rude as he had shown every time he spoke, but Lea said Isa was his friend. So Vanitas figured there must be some nicer side to him under all the coldness he showed.</p><p>After a moment he got up and nodded. "Okay…"</p><p>"All right kid, just follow us. We'll show you around and everything," Lea said as he walked towards Isa, who was still standing in the doorway.</p><p>"I said stop calling me kid…" Vanitas grumbled as he crossed his arms.</p><p>Lea sighed a little. "Sorry. It was Vanitas, right?" Vanitas just grumbled and nodded in response. "Okay then, let's go." Lea motioned for Vanitas to follow as he began to walk down the hall. Isa didn't say anything, but walked along with Lea.</p><p>Vanitas quickly walked to catch up with them, though he walked behind them and did say anything. He still was not too happy to know that this mansion was now basically his home. The three walked in silence for a little bit as they continued down the hallway.</p><p>Finally after another minute of no one talking, Lea cleared his throat. "Hm. So Vanitas… You got a nickname or something?"</p><p>"Yeah? Why do you wanna know?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>Lea shrugged. "Just was wondering. Would you prefer us to call you by that then?"</p><p>Vanitas shrugged. "Whatever…"</p><p>"What's your nickname then? Van? Vani?" Lea asked.</p><p>Vanitas tensed up slightly. "Not Vani. Don't call me Vani." There was only one person who ever called him Vani. It was the same person who had created the nickname for him. That person of course was Ventus.</p><p>Vanitas recalled the memory of when Ventus had first given him the nickname. They were pretty young at the time and Ventus had said that Vani sounded far better than Van. Ventus had then also said that then he couldn't be mistaken for a car van. Both of them laughed so hard at that. They thought it was one of the funniest things in the world at the time. After that Ventus was the first and only one who could call him Vani. Vanitas wouldn't let anyone else call him that. That name was only between him and his best friend.</p><p>"Sorry, didn't mean to upset you by that. So is Van fine then?" Lea said.</p><p>Vanitas sighed. "Yeah… that's fine…If you want to..." He had tried to smile at the memory he had remembered, but there was still no joy feeling coming from it. He still tried to smile though… to pretend to be feeling happy. But it was just so hard. He now understood what Isa had talked about before. It was hard to pretend to have emotions when he really didn't have any at all.</p><p>"Now that we got that out of the way," Lea started. "If you don't mind me asking this… where are you from?"</p><p>Vanitas stopped walking and crossed his arms again. "Why does it matter to you? Why do you keep asking so many questions?"</p><p>Lea sighed and shrugged, turning around to face Vanitas. "I'm just trying to make a conversation. And to answer your other question, not everyone here is actually from Twilight Town. A lot of us are from all around, so I was just curious."</p><p>"If he doesn't wish to talk about it Lea, he doesn't have to," Isa added in quietly.</p><p>Vanitas thought for a moment before he spoke up again. "Why don't you tell me where you two are from first?"</p><p>"That's fine," Lea said. "We're from Radiant Garden."</p><p>Vanitas's eyes widened a little. "Radiant Garden? That's pretty far from here… how did you two end up trapped here then?"</p><p>"Same reason you probably came here. To explore this place and see if the rumors and legends were true. As I said before, we came here to explore this place a few years back… but once we entered… We got trapped here and all that…" Lea trailed off as he looked towards the ground for a moment.</p><p>There was a moment of silence between all three of them, but Vanitas finally decided to speak up. Though he spoke quietly as he mumbled his words. "Destiny Islands."</p><p>Lea looked up again. "What was that?"</p><p>"I'm from Destiny Islands…" Vanitas responded.</p><p>"Ah I see. I've heard it's a nice place… never got to go there before though," Lea said.</p><p>"I went once or twice when I was younger. It is a nice place to visit anytime of year," Isa said, speaking up again.</p><p>Vanitas closed his eyes as he thought of his home. He was never going to see it again. He was never going to run along the shore and play in the ocean. All of that was over for him now. Vanitas sighed a little… he really wished he could feel upset about this, but there was still nothing at all. He started to wonder how well everyone could handle something like this...because he wasn't so sure he would be able to.</p><p>"We can continue walking now…" Vanitas said.</p><p>Lea nodded without saying anything more, and the three of them continued on their walk. They walked for a bit further until they came to a hallway that split into three different directions. Lea and Isa stopped for a moment, seeming to debate which way to go first. This place was far larger than Vanitas ever thought. He began to wonder just how many rooms were actually in the mansion and what other type of rooms there were. Suddenly a thought came to his mind. He noticed that everything in the hallways was nicely kept and clean. Nothing here looked abandoned at all.</p><p>"Wait… how come all of this looks nice and clean, but the front of the mansion still looks all messy and abandoned? There's all that broken glass and stuff over there, but none of that is down here."</p><p>"Well...That's probably because…" Lea said as he thought about it. "I don't know how to explain it… You know how, Isa?"</p><p>"It is because it lures the unsuspecting people into a false sense of security. Someone enters this place, sees the lobby in disrepair, and thinks it is completely abandoned due to it being in that state. If it were kept in pristine condition like the rest of his place, people would be more wary of entering here. Ansem had it done on purpose so more people would come in to explore out of curiosity. Just like you did the other night," Isa explained rather casually.</p><p>"That was a little more than I expected… but yeah, what he said," Lea commented. He paused for a moment before pointing down the left hallway. "Come one, we'll go down this way towards the library."</p><p>"There's a library in here?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"There is a lot more than just bedrooms here. This place is like a really fancy hotel or something. Lots of different rooms for different purposes," Lea said as they all started walking down the left hallway.</p><p>They then came to a staircase that led down to the first floor. Upon walking a little bit more they came to a large set of doors. Much larger and fancier looking than the bedroom doors. Lea reached forward and placed his hand on one of the door handles.</p><p>"Let's see if anyone is in here right now," Lea said before opening the door.</p><p>Vanitas peered inside to see what he had expected. It was a large room full of shelves that held many books. There were also a few tables with books scattered across them. Vanitas then noticed something at one of the tables… or really someone. Much to his surprise he saw a young boy sitting at one of the tables, reading a book. He looked like he was just a couple years younger than Vanitas. He had short, metallic, bluish-grey hair with some of it falling over his right eyes. The boy didn't seem to notice any of them enter, he just continued to read his book.</p><p>"That's Ienzo," Lea said. "Don't be surprised if he doesn't talk to you. He's a quiet kid. He prefers to sit around and read all day."</p><p>"But…" Vanitas started trying to figure out his words. "He's just…"</p><p>"Just a kid right?" Lea answered. He then let out a sigh. "Yeah he is...He's only nine years old, but has been here three years. Just a year before we came here. He's… one of the few Ansem actually brought here himself."</p><p>Vanitas looked at Lea, confused and surprised by his statement. "Brought here?"</p><p>Vanitas thought Lea would answer, but instead Isa was the one to speak up. "For whatever reason, whether there is a real reason or if he does it just out of boredom, there are a few who are brought here actually by Ansem. They of course are under the curse just as we are."</p><p>"Wait...You mean Ansem can actually leave the mansion?" Vanitas suddenly asked.</p><p>"Yeah. Unfair I know," Lea sighed. "But I guess since he created the curse, he isn't affected by it."</p><p>"Oh...I see…" Vanitas said as he looked down at the ground. He then looked back at Ienzo who was still reading his book. "So do you know why he was brought here?"</p><p>Lea shook his head. "We tried asking Ienzo before if he knew why Ansem brought him here, but he never has said anything about it. Like I said, a rather quiet kid."</p><p>"If you are going to talk about me like that… How about you do it when I am <em>not</em> in the room? I would prefer not to have to hear you all talk about me when I am just sitting right here," Ienzo grumbled as he spoke up. He had placed the book down on the table and now was looking at the group.</p><p>"Sorry Ienzo. We were just showing the new kid around," Lea said as he gestured to Vanitas. "This is Vanitas."</p><p>Ienzo stared at Vanitas with narrowed eyes as if he was inspecting Vanitas for something. Vanitas waved slightly, but didn't say anything. He was still having a hard time because there was actually someone younger than him trapped in the mansion. He could only wonder how Ienzo dealt with the curse for so long at so young of an age.</p><p>Finally after another moment Ienzo was the one to speak up. "Hello Vanitas. Welcome to the mansion… I guess." Ienzo then picked up his book and went back to his reading.</p><p>"I think that's all you are going to get out of him for today. Let's continue on with the tour," Lea said as he stepped out of the room with Isa followed him a second later.</p><p>Vanitas looked at Ienzo one last time and then exited the room. "How many others are there?"</p><p>"What do you mean exactly? Lea said as they started to walk again.</p><p>"How many people are trapped here?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"Well… there's been many throughout the years since the curse started...But not a whole lot in recent years. I think there may be over twenty people here right now? I've never really paid much attention to all of that," Lea said.</p><p>"Ah...Okay…" Vanitas sighed.</p><p>Lea and Isa continued to lead Vanitas around the mansion. They showed him different rooms and areas, like where the kitchen and dining hall was. They had stopped there for a bit while Vanitas ate some food. At first he was wary of eating the food that existed in the cursed mansion, but Lea and Isa assured him it was safe to eat. When the tour continued on, they did encounter others who were trapped there, but Vanitas stopped paying attention to who they were. All the rest seemed to be adults and he also just wasn't that interested in meeting everyone. By the end of the tour they had ended up at the front of the mansion.</p><p>"So Van, what do you want to do now?" Lea asked.</p><p>"What do you mean?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"Well we just showed you all around the mansion, there must be something you want to do to pass the time," Lea explained.</p><p>Vanitas thought about it for a moment, but he just didn't want to do anything. He was still upset that he was trapped here so he really didn't want to do anything. There was that and also he didn't <em>feel</em> like doing anything.</p><p>"What would we even do though?" Vanitas decided to ask anyways.</p><p>"I don't know. Something fun like a game or something. There's a lot of things we could do," Lea responded as he rubbed the back of his next.</p><p>"Fun?" Vanitas asked. "But how can we have… fun if we can't feel it?" Vanitas remembered what Lea had said before about being able to do things that would bring emotions, even if they couldn't feel them anymore. But he still was not too keen on that. He really wanted to feel emotions when having fun, not just pretend. He didn't want to play and not feel any fun from it.</p><p>Lea sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. "I know we can't feel having fun, but we can still do something at least."</p><p>"No… I just want to go back to my room…" Vanitas responded.</p><p>"Are you sure? You shouldn't just stay in your room all day," Lea said.</p><p>"I can do what I want, and I want to go back to my room. You can't tell me what to do," Vanitas grumbled as he walked past Isa and Lea and headed towards his room.</p><p>Lea and Isa stood there as they walked Vanitas walk off until he was out of sight. Lea turned towards Isa and narrowed his eyebrows. "I'm going to blame you for this."</p><p>Isa looked at Lea with a little confusion. "Me? Whatever for?"</p><p>"I think what you said before is getting to him. You're not a good role model for the kid," Lea responded.</p><p>"I think he was already like that beforehand. You saw how he was before we properly met him. Punching that pillow and his attitude towards everything has nothing to do with me," Isa responded calmly, with still no sign of any emotion in him.</p><p>"You still gotta be nicer to him. Don't go telling him that he shouldn't bother remembering emotions or what not. I don't need him ended up all emotionless like you."</p><p>"But wouldn't that be pointless? Aren't we all already emotionless? If that is the case then you failed already," Isa said, and much to Lea's surprise there seemed to be the slightest smirk on Isa's face.</p><p>Lea groaned as he rolled his eyes. It was always slightly annoying when Isa decided to be snarky or sarcastic like that. "Oh ha ha, very funny. How about this then… I don't want him to end up being a boring stick in the mud like you."</p><p>The small smirk faded from Isa's face as he shrugged. "I cannot determine what the kid will become. That is something for him to decide. If he decides to discard the memories of emotion then that is his choice."</p><p>"Well I really hope he doesn't do that. He seems like he could be a nice kid. I'd hate to see him end up like that."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Chapter 11</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The days soon started to pass, but Vanitas rarely ever left his room. He would come down to the kitchen for food, but he would not stay to eat with whomever else was there. He would take his food and head back to his room. Soon a week had passed since Vanitas became trapped and Lea started to wonder if Vanitas was really okay.</p><p>"I really wonder how well he is handling it," Lea said to Isa one day as they ate lunch. Vanitas hadn't even shown up to get food at all that day.</p><p>"I suppose you want to go and check on him?" Isa questioned.</p><p>"Yeah…I just don't want to see him isolate himself like this. He is still a kid, he should be trying to have fun… given the circumstances."</p><p>"You mean pretending to have fun," Isa responded.</p><p>Lea just shook his head as he closed his eyes. "It doesn't matter. What does matter is that he needs to know he isn't alone here."</p><p>"If you say so…"</p><p>"Come on Isa, don't tell me you don't feel bad for the kid. Being trapped here at a young age and separated from his best friend, you know that it must be hard for him," Lea said, hoping for once Isa would just lighten up and be nice for once. But he also had known Isa for years, and Isa wasn't the best at being nice and friendly to others. He was also very good at making sarcastic comments at almost everything. Though usually he was just joking around with stuff like that. But since they had become trapped in the mansion, Isa had become far colder and ruder than he was back when they still had hearts.</p><p>The response he got from Isa was sadly the response he had expected, but of course it didn't bother him.</p><p>"If I could actually feel sympathy then maybe I would care… but I don't," Isa stated rather bluntly before returning his focus to eating his food.</p><p>A moment later he looked back up at Lea. "And if you claim to 'care' so much, then why don't you show that same 'caring' to Ienzo. He is a child just the same as Vanitas is."</p><p>Lea sat back in his chair as he crossed his arms. "That's different. Ienzo was here before us… and he seemed to already be adjusted to this life when we got here. And he just isn't all that approachable. Beside that… Vanitas is the first one to get trapped after us. To see a kid's reaction finding out they don't have emotions...I just want to leave him alone to deal with that."</p><p>There was a silence between the two of them for a few minutes. Isa had gone back to eating his food as Lea stared up at the ceiling. A moment later Lea let out a long sigh before he stood up. "Well I am at least going to check up on the kid. And no matter what you say, I know that you do care for the kid. Even without emotions, you want to help him out as much as I do."</p><p>"Sure thing…" Isa muttered as he didn't look back up at Lea.</p><p>After that Lea made his way down the halls until he got to Vanitas's room. Once he got there he knocked on the door.</p><p>Lea waited for a minute, but there was no response. After waiting a few seconds more he spoke up. "Hey Van, you in there?"</p><p>There wasn't any answer.</p><p>Lea sighed as he slowly opened the door. The curtains were closed and the light was off, making it very hard to see in the room. Though it was dark, he was able to see Vanitas sitting in the far corner of the room. His back was up against the wall as he had his arms wrapped around his legs, which were held close to his chest.</p><p>"Van… Are you okay?" Lea asked.</p><p>Vanitas looked over at Lea for a moment. He stared directly at him, his eyes unblinking. And then he went back to staring at the wall across from him. Lea sighed again as he made his way across the room to the window.</p><p>"Why don't you open the window or something? It's too dark in here."</p><p>"I don't care…" Vanitas mumbled.</p><p>"Well I think it would be best to let some light in here. You don't wanna spend the rest of your life in the shadows," Lea said as he pulled open the curtains, letting the light shine in.</p><p>Vanitas grumbled as he buried his head against his knees. "Maybe I want to…"</p><p>Lea let out another sigh. Vanitas seemed to be having a harder time than he originally thought. He then walked over and sat down next to Vanitas. "How are you feeling?"</p><p>"What do you think? Nothing… I feel nothing. I don't <em>feel</em> anything, remember?" Vanitas said with a huff of air.</p><p>"I know...But that doesn't mean you can stay in your room from now on."</p><p>"Why does it matter though?" Vanitas said as he looked up. There was a look in his eyes that made Lea more concerned. His eyes looked full of emptiness and nothing more. "Why does it matter what I do anymore? It doesn't mean anything to me anyways…"</p><p>Lea gently placed a hand on top of Vanitas's head. "Hey… I know it's hard. Trust me I know… But you can't let that stop you from living your life."</p><p>"But what kind of life can I ever have here?" Vanitas said as he swatted Lea's hand away. "Just leave me alone." It seemed like Vanitas wanted to be irritated or mad, there was the angry tone to his voice, but there was no emotional passion in his words.</p><p>"Sorry kid, but I can't do that," Lea replied. He wasn't going to give up that easily.</p><p>"Why though?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"Because I care, and I don't want to see a young kid like you end up so cold."</p><p>Vanitas glared at Lea before he tried to shove him away. "You can't care though! You told me that we didn't have emotions anymore. So you can't care! I don't… I don't even feel angry now...though I know I should. I just..." Vanitas placed his hands on his head. He gripped his hair tightly "There's nothing inside. It's so empty...I can't stand it…I can't live like this… I hate this emptiness."</p><p>Lea quickly moved in front of Vanitas and grabbed onto his shoulders. Startled by Lea's sudden hold, Vanitas looked up at him with wide, confused eyes.</p><p>"Yes I know I said that. And I know that it feels empty inside. Everyone here knows what it's like. But I also said we can remember those emotions. We may have lost our emotions and the feelings that come from them, but we haven't lost the memories. Vanitas, you are just a kid. Don't throw away your humanity like this."</p><p>"My… humanity?" Vanitas asked, not fully knowing what the word meant.</p><p>"Yes, your humanity. It means being human and that stuff that makes you human. Doing things like you normally do and all that. You can't just throw that all away, you gotta get that memorized," Lea said, continuing to try to persuade Vanitas.</p><p>"But why should we pretend we have emotions though? I still don't really get it… What is the point of that?"</p><p>"It's because…" Lea paused for a moment as he gathered his thoughts. "Again it has to do with the humanity thing. We don't want to give ourselves into the emptiness and lose what it means to be human. Even if we are just pretending, we are showing we still know what emotions are and all that."</p><p>"But… what about Isa? He… He doesn't show… any humanity...He said it was pointless to pretend..." Vanitas mumbled.</p><p>"I know it does seem like Isa stopped thinking about emotions and stuff and doesn't pretend to still have them, but he still does have his humanity. He's just not very good at showing it," Lea replied with a smile.</p><p>"Really?"</p><p>Lea nodded. "Yeah, he still has his annoying sarcasm towards things. Sure he may seem a bit dull and boring at times, but he still has his moments that show he is still human. But mainly, he is just really grumpy. But don't tell him I said that." Lea chuckled slightly as he gave a small smile.</p><p>Vanitas found himself to be smiling a little in return. It wasn't much, but he knew it was enough. Tears began to fall from his eyes as he wished he could feel the emotion behind it. But he knew what it was supposed to be. He was grateful that there was someone here who cared. Lea cared, or tried his best to show that he could care if he still had emotions. Vanitas leaned forward and gave Lea a hug, even though he knew it would mean nothing without their emotions. He knew though that Lea would understand what he meant by it though.</p><p>Vanitas closed his eyes as he thought of memories from his past that were happy. He thought of the happiness in those memories and tried to remember what it was like. Even though he couldn't feel that happiness anymore, he was able to recall those happy memories. And that was good enough for him.</p><p>"Thank you Lea," Vanitas mumbled as he felt Lea pat him on the head again, trying to give a form of comfort. This time though he didn't mind.</p><p>"Sure thing kid," Lea replied, happy that he had gotten through to Vanitas.</p><p>That was when Vanitas realized something. Lea was nice and caring towards him… like an older brother would be. He thought it was nice that he now had an older brother figure watching over him now. He knew it would help him get through all of it. But then Vanitas then remembered that he was going to be a big brother eventually… though now he never would.</p><p>"Lea? Can I tell you something?" Vanitas asked as he let go of Lea and sat back up straight.</p><p>"Sure, what's up?"</p><p>Vanitas took in a deep breath as he prepared what he was going to say. This whole situation was hard for him, he wasn't used to being so friendly with others. Normally he liked being cool and the tough friend who always looks out for his friends. He was always like that with Ventus. He would be the big protective friend and look out for his best friend. He had always tried so hard to be tough and strong. But now all of that was over and Vanitas saw no need to keep up being that way. He had no one to look out for and protect anymore. He also in general didn't like people seeing him be so soft and nice, but due to the situation, that had changed.</p><p>"I am going to be a big brother… or was… before I got trapped here. But now I'll never get to meet my little sibling," Vanitas explained.</p><p>"Ah… I see," Lea said as he listened to Vanitas. He now figured that was another one of the reasons Vanitas was rather unhappy being stuck in the mansion. "<em>Poor kid...He's lost far more than any kid should."</em> Lea then tried to think of something to say to Vanitas to try to help.</p><p>"Hmm... You could always try being an older brother to Ienzo, though I don't know how well that would work…" Lea said.</p><p>"Yeah," Vanitas nodded in agreement. "He doesn't really seem like the brotherly type...Maybe I'll try to talk to him… Thanks for trying to help though. I just really wish I could have at least met my little sibling…"</p><p>Lea opened his mouth to try to say something more, but he just couldn't figure out what to say. He had no idea what he could say to something like that. What could he even say? What would he say to a kid who had lost everything and would never get to see his family or friends again? Vanitas was only eleven years old, he was still so young and yet he had been thrown into a terrible situation. Lea didn't want to accidently frustrate or upset Vanitas anymore than he already had been. But he knew he had to say something.</p><p>"Well… I know it may be hard, not getting to meet your sibling and all, but we can be brothers if you want."</p><p>Vanitas stared wide-eyed at Lea. "Huh? You mean it?" Vanitas just had realized that Lea felt like a brother to him, but he didn't think that Lea would think the same way about the situation.</p><p>"Of course. I think it would be fun," Lea said as he ruffled Vanitas's hair.</p><p>Vanitas brought forth more happy memories to make smiling easier. Even without feeling, the memories were a huge help. "Thanks!"</p><p>"Hey, how about we go get some food? You're probably really hungry by now right?"</p><p>Vanitas nodded. "Yeah, let's go."</p><p>The two of them stood up and headed out into the hall. As they walked Lea spoke again. "Also if Isa says anything rude again, just ignore him. He just likes to be a grump a lot of the time."</p><p>Vanitas nodded. "Got it." He thought for a moment as they continued to walk. "You think Isa could be my brother too?"</p><p>"You would want a stick in the mud for a brother?" Lea asked as he laughed.</p><p>Vanitas laughed too, though he still wished he could actually feel the joy behind it all. "He is your best friend though, so why not?"</p><p>"Well we could talk to him about it, but I bet he would just pass it off as pointless. Though," Lea leaned closer to Vanitas and began to whisper. "I bet secretly he would want to."</p><p>"You really think so?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>Lea nodded. "Yep. But let's talk to him about it later. Let's first get you some food."</p><p>"Okay," Vanitas replied.</p><p>Vanitas followed right behind Lea as they headed to the kitchen. When they entered they saw Isa, who was still sitting at one of the tables. He looked over at Lea and then his eyes drifted down to Vanitas. After a moment he looked back at Lea, he seemed to let out a sigh.</p><p>"What ever did you say to him Lea? It looks like now he is going to follow you around like a little, lost puppy," Isa spoke with no emotion and tone to his voice, but a small smirk had formed across his face.</p><p>Lea bent over and leaned in close to Vanitas. He then whispered to him. "See what did I tell you? He may seem emotionless, but he still liked to make a joke here and there."</p><p>"Yeah…" Vanitas said as he looked over at Isa for a moment. "But I don't get it… what does he mean by 'little, lost puppy'?"</p><p>Lea chuckled as he stood back up straight. "Eh it's nothing you need to worry about. He's just saying with you following me so closely it looks like you are a little puppy who's lost and wants to follow someone."</p><p>Vanitas scrunched up his nose as he faced Isa. "I don't see that as very funny. I am not a puppy…"</p><p>Much to Vanitas's surprise Isa chuckled. It wasn't a loud chuckle. It was just a soft chuckle, but it was still clearly audible. "If you knew Lea well enough, like I do, you would understand the meaning behind that. Lea always has had a habit for picking up stray puppies and you are no different than the rest."</p><p>Vanitas now turned back to face Lea. "What does he mean? Tell me now!"</p><p>"Maybe some other time," Lea said as he started to gather some food to make for Vanitas. "It's really nothing big or exciting."</p><p>Vanitas frowned as he ignored the emptiness inside and for the first time since becoming trapped, pretended he was actually feeling frustrated and confused by everything going on. "Tell me already! I want to know! Just tell me what he means by 'stray puppies'!"</p><p>Lea sighed as he chuckled a little. "Now look what you've done Isa. You got him all riled up."</p><p>Isa smirked again. "I didn't do a thing." Isa then paused for a moment as his smirk faded away. "And you don't have to act so upset, you know he isn't actually riled up."</p><p>"And you're no fun sometimes. Can't you ever just go along with everything and just have some fun?"</p><p>Isa stared at Lea for a bit before he gave his answer. "No."</p><p>Lea groaned while he pinched the bridge of his nose. Vanitas though, couldn't help but laugh a little. He was actually enjoying being around Isa and Lea. Vanitas started to see more and more what Lea had meant. He now was understanding the part about acting like they still had emotions and all that stuff. He also saw that Isa and Lea were still close friends even though being a part of the mansion's curse seemed to change somethings between them. They seemed to not get along, but at the same time they seemed like they were best friends. Vanitas could tell by the way they talked and responded to each other.</p><p>Suddenly a thought came to Vanitas as he tuned out Lea and Isa's conversation. "<em>Would Ven and I still get along if he was also trapped here with me? Hmm… or would Ven not want to talk to me since he didn't want to come here in the first place? Guess I'll never know… I am glad though that he also isn't trapped. For once it is a good thing he is such a scaredy cat. I am glad he is safe… well I would be glad if I could still feel that emotion…I have no idea how the rest of the people here can manage this emptiness inside… but if they can, maybe...I can as well."</em></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Chapter 12</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Vanitas sat at the table Isa was sitting at while he waited for Lea to make some food. As he sat there his mind wandered and a thought came to him. He thought of something he didn't seem to think much about beforehand.</p><p>"Wait… Where's Ansem?" Vanitas just now had realized that he hadn't heard or seen Ansem since he was trapped here. Maybe it was because he had spent all the days in his room, but it was now something he was curious about.</p><p>"He likes to come and go as he pleases," Isa replied. "We don't know where he goes though. But I would figure he has some other place he visits for whatever reasons he has."</p><p>"And he just leaves everyone here to be on their own?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"It's not like we can escape from here," Lea said as he brought over some toast for Vanitas.</p><p>"Oh… Yeah…" Vanitas said as he looked down as his food.</p><p>"But at least there's still plenty to do around here," Lea said as he sat across from Vanitas. After Vanitas started to eat his food Lea decided to speak up again. "So what do you wanna do Vanitas? After you eat of course."</p><p>"I… Don't know…" Vanitas said as he thought things over. He still couldn't think of anything he wanted to do. He was still having a hard time adjusting to not feeling, so that added to not wanting to do anything. Though he kept trying his best he couldn't think of anything.</p><p>"Well we could always play a game or something. There are a lot of games and stuff around here," Lea suggested.</p><p>"Maybe we could try that," Vanitas said.</p><p>"All right! We'll find a game to play after you eat. We are going to have some fun today, okay?" Lea stated with confidence.</p><p>"You guys can try to have fun, but not me," Isa said as he got up from his seat.</p><p>"Aw come on Isa, join us for a fun game," Lea said.</p><p>Isa shook his head. "No. I don't care to play any games or have fun for that matter."</p><p>Vanitas saw the cold and distant look in Isa's eyes, he wanted to try to get to know Isa more but he was just so cold and rude. Vanitas sighed a little, but then he remembered what Lea had said. He thought it over for a second before he thought of something to say to Isa, to hopefully try and convince him to play with them.</p><p>"Why don't you wanna play with us?" he asked Isa.</p><p>"Because…I don't care to," Isa said, seeming to want to brush off the subject. But Vanitas was not ready to give up.</p><p>"But it's just a game and having fun. You should play with us Isa," Vanitas said.</p><p>"I don't see much point nowadays in playing games. They aren't a whole lot of fun when you can't truly enjoy them," Isa replied.</p><p>Vanitas sighed again. "<em>Isa sure is stubborn about this. But Lea said that Isa just acts all cold like this. I bet I could get him to play with us… just gotta think how."</em></p><p>"Don't be such a drag Isa," Lea decided to say. "Come on and play a game with us. Get to know the kid."</p><p>"Yeah! Come on Isa," Vanitas added it.</p><p>"You two are trying to be very persuasive. But it won't work. I am not going to play any games," Isa replied.</p><p>Vanitas thought for one moment more. Suddenly a very sly comment came to mind. He just hoped that it would actually work. "So you don't want to play… cause you know you are just going to lose, right?"</p><p>Isa's eyes widened slightly. "Now why would you say that?"</p><p>"Cause you don't wanna play a game. That means that you are afraid to lose,' Vanitas replied casually.</p><p>Isa narrowed his eyes slightly at Vanitas. "I am not afraid I would lose."</p><p>"Ah, so you know you would lose," Vanitas stated.</p><p>"No…" Isa grumbled. "I would not lose at all."</p><p>"Then prove it. Prove to me that you can win a game or something," Vanitas said as he smirked. "Otherwise I'll just think you are just afraid of losing or a sore loser."</p><p>"Very well then, I'll accept your challenge. Only to show that I am not afraid to lose, nor would I be a sore loser," Isa stated as he crossed his arms.</p><p>Vanitas chuckled with confidence after that. Lea also couldn't help but chuckle at little as he realized what just had happened. Vanitas still couldn't believe that it actually had worked. Isa though seemed confused over it all.</p><p>"What do you two think is so funny?" Isa asked as he raised an eyebrow.</p><p>"You just fell for the kid's trap," Lea said as he smirked. "He roped you into playing some games with us. And no, you can't take that back now."</p><p>Isa's gasped as he finally realized it all. He then sighed as he rubbed his forehead, seeming like he was mad at the fact he had fallen for something so silly. After a moment though he regained himself and looked right at Vanitas.</p><p>"Fine… you may have gotten me there. But I won't let it happen again, but I will stay true to my word on this and play some games."</p><p>Vanitas smiled after that. That was when he saw that Isa wasn't as bad as he originally had thought. Sure Isa was still rude and mostly emotionless, but he did still seem to show a little bit of emotion here and there. He really always wanted to have him be like his brother, like Lea was going to do. But he knew something like that would be harder to talk about to Isa. Vanitas figured he would have to think up something good to say to get Isa to agree to it.</p><p>Once Vanitas had finished up his meal they headed out into one of the recreational rooms that held board games and other various fun items. Vanitas looked through the closet that held all the bored games and started to look over all the different boxes. His eyes soon fell upon one game. One certain game that he was very familiar with. He pulled out the box and looked at the title.</p><p>The game was called '<em>Command Board'</em> and Vanitas knew the game very well. It was a slightly complicated game but he loved playing it. Vanitas sighed a little as he thought back on memories of playing the game. Memories of playing it with Ventus.</p><p>Ventus was the one who first had introduced him to the game. It took several tries to learn it, and Vanitas originally had gotten very frustrated while trying to learn how to play. He chuckled a little as he remembered the few times he had gotten so frustrated at the game that he actually flipped over the board. But he did learn to play the game and ended up loving it. He had mostly played it with just Ventus, but there were times where Ventus's other friends, Terra and Aqua, joined them.</p><p>After reminiscing about the game for a bit more, he finally turned around to show Isa and Lea the game. "This is what I wanna play."</p><p>"Ah <em>Command Board.</em> Good choice," Lea said.</p><p>"Well that is a game at least that you don't have to worry about Lea winning. He's never been very good at the game," Isa said while a small smug look appeared on his face.</p><p>"Hey! I've won a few games before," Lea retorted.</p><p>"Hmph, I let you win those," Isa replied, keeping his steady emotionless gaze while still having a slight smugness to his face.</p><p>Lea gasped. "You what? Come on Isa… You can't be serious about that."</p><p>Isa merely just shrugged. "Maybe I am and maybe I'm not."</p><p>"Aw come on Isa!" Lea sighed heavily. "Let's just play the game and see who's right."</p><p>Vanitas chuckled. "I'll be the one winning. I'll easily beat both of you."</p><p>"Oh really now?" Isa asked skeptically as he raised an eyebrow. "Well we shall see about that."</p><p>The three then headed over to one of the tables to set up the game. Vanitas picked out his favorite board layout and they prepared to play. As they played the game, Vanitas found it to be the most fun that he had since becoming trapped here. He tried his best to ignore the emptiness inside and only focus on happy and fun memories, and it seemed to help even though he truly couldn't feel any of it. But he knew at least he was doing something fun and that was all that mattered at the moment.</p><hr/><p>
  <em>6 months later</em>
</p><p>Months had passed since Vanitas became trapped in the cursed mansion, and he had slowly gotten used to the fact that he was in fact trapped there. For the first few months he would go to sleep wishing everything was just a really long bad dream, but he would wake up the same each day. He would wake up in his room in the mansion and he would still feel empty inside. It never changed and he slowly came to accept that… even though he really didn't want to.</p><p>But now it had been months since he first came to the mansion. A half of a year had come and gone. Vanitas was sitting on the edge of his bed, staring out the window of his room. He was watching the outside world. Snow had begun to cover the ground and trees while frost had begun to creep up on the outside of the windows.</p><p>The snow stared to fall again from the sky, making the landscape look even prettier. Vanitas sighed heavily as he wrapped his arms around his pillow, holding it close to his chest.</p><p>A knock was heard at his door a moment later.</p><p>"Hey Ven, you in there?" Lea's voice asked through the door.</p><p>"Yeah…" Vanitas said, not taking his eyes away from the window.</p><p>The door opened in the next second and Lea walked in, but Vanitas still pay no attention to him. He heard Lea walk over closer to him though. "So I take it you've been in here all morning since breakfast then?"</p><p>Vanitas nodded, but he didn't care to say anything more.</p><p>"First snowfall of the year. It's nice right?" Lea asked, trying to make more of a conversation.</p><p>"I guess…" Vanitas muttered.</p><p>"What do you mean 'you guess'? It's snow! It's always nice to watch the snow fall," Lea replied.</p><p>Vanitas let out another sigh. It still bothered him he couldn't feel emotions over situations and he wasn't too fond of having to explain everything, but he knew Lea would listen. Vanitas was still happy for the fact that Lea still tried his best to help out and be like a big brother to him. It did help make things easier for Vanitas at times.</p><p>"I've… I've never seen snow before."</p><p>"What? Seriously?" Lea asked.</p><p>Vanitas finally turned to look at Lea, forming an angry look across his face. Even without feeling, he knew the expression was still there and it could still mean a lot. "Of course not! I'm from Destiny Islands, remember? Warm weather all year long there. It never once snowed there. So yes… this is the first time I've seen snow in person."</p><p>Lea closed his eyes as he sighed. "Sorry…" After a deep breath he straightened up and a smile came across his face. "Well since this is your first time seeing snow, we gotta make it count. Come on, let's go out to one of the courtyards."</p><p>Vanitas tilted his head slightly. "Why?"</p><p>"So you can experience the snow first hand. It's more than stuff to look at. I know you've at least heard about all the fun you can have with snow," Lea replied.</p><p>"But…" Vanitas looked at Lea before looking out the window at the snow. "How can I experience the fun of snow… without… you know…"</p><p>"The same way you have been having fun here, thinking of fun memories and all that stuff."</p><p>"But this is different. I've never experienced anything like snow… I don't know…It just wouldn't be the same…" Vanitas sighed after he finished speaking.</p><p>"Come on though Van, you gotta at least try. I bet it would be fun at least to try to convince Isa to join us," Lea said. He then rubbed his chin in thought. "I wonder how hard it would be to get him to agree to a snowball fight."</p><p>Vanitas looked back at Lea and smiled a little. Trying to get Isa to join them in fun things was something that Vanitas enjoyed doing. Though Vanitas still was a bit conflicted between everything. He understood what Lea meant by holding onto the memories of emotion, but he also saw from Isa how easy it was just to let that go because there wasn't really anything there. But then again Isa did have his moments where he seemed to pretend to show some form of emotion, though most of the time it was rudeness or something else like that.</p><p>"All right fine… I'll go outside and see the snow," Vanitas said as he jumped off the bed. "But don't we need winter clothes and stuff?"</p><p>"Yeah you're right about that. There is probably some stuff in some of the closets. Let's go check it out," Lea said as they headed out of the room.</p><p>There were several clothes throughout the mansion that were filled with different clothes. Clothes for all different seasons and also all different sizes. They made their way down the hallway until they reached one of the clothes and then opened it up. They thankfully were able to find some winter coats, hats and gloves that were very close in their sizes. Once they had them on, Lea grabbed stuff for Isa and then they made their way around the mansion, looking for where Isa was.</p><p>"I think I last saw him in the library, so let's check over there first," Lea instructed as they walked along the hallway.</p><p>"Okay," Vanitas said as he nodded. "But what if we can't actually get him to join us?"</p><p>"Then we will just leave him to be a party pooper and we will have the fun all to ourselves," Lea said as he chuckled slightly.</p><p>Vanitas still never could understand Lea. He knew Lea still held on to many memories of emotion, but he still couldn't understand how Lea actually could handle it all. He knew Lea was just the same as him and everyone else… they all had their emotions taken away by Ansem. But Lea seemed to be the only one in the entire mansion that could pretend to still have those emotions. Vanitas sometimes wondered what Lea was like when he was alone… and not pretending to have emotions. Was he like Vanitas? Or maybe even like Isa? Did he feel all alone and empty? Did he also hate the constant emptiness inside that always was there now? Did he ever just not want to keep on pretending? Vanitas could never tell with Lea, but he still wondered about that from time to time. He never cared to ask though, those were just thoughts he kept to himself. He knew though he was still glad to have Lea as a friend at the mansion.</p><p>The two of them walked down to the library room and stepped inside. Isa was there in fact, sitting at one of the tables as he looked through some books. When he heard the door close, he looked up at Lea and Vanitas. He narrowed his eyes as he inspected them. Before either Vanitas or Lea could say or ask anything Isa spoke up first.</p><p>"No."</p><p>"But we didn't even-" Vanitas started to say, but Isa cut him off.</p><p>"I already know what you are going to ask and the answer is no. I am not going to go play in the snow," Isa replied. There was a cold and serious harshness in his eyes that seemed to show that he was not going to change his mind.</p><p>Vanitas knew he had to try something though. "But Isa… This is my first time seeing snow in person."</p><p>"I had figured that would be the case, but I still say no. And besides that... " Isa leaned forward slightly. "You really want your first experience with snow to be when you can't feel any emotion?"</p><p>"Isa," Lea started off with a warning tone in his voice.</p><p>"I can still go out there and have fun. I just gotta think of fun memories from before," Vanitas replied as he walked closer to Isa. Even if he couldn't get Isa to join him, he would at least try to stand his ground to prove that he could still have fun in the snow even without emotions.</p><p>"While that may be true, this is an experience you have never encountered before. How can you find fun memories to pretend to have fun if you don't even know how to properly react to the snow?"</p><p>Vanitas took a step back now. He hadn't thought about it like that before. Now that he heard Isa say it, those thoughts built up in his mind and wouldn't leave his mind. He stared down at the ground now as he let Isa's words continue to linger.</p><p>"Cut it out Isa," Lea grumbled as he placed a hand on Vanitas's shoulder. "Don't ruin it for him."</p><p>"I would say not having any emotions already ruined it for him. I am just explaining it so he wouldn't have to go through the frustration of not being able to feel anything when seeing the snow or trying to play with it," Isa replied casually as he leaned back in the chair.</p><p>Lea sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. "Sometimes I just don't understand…" He muttered those words quietly under his breath. After a moment he shook his head and turned around, now facing the door. "Come on Vanitas, let's go."</p><p>Vanitas did not verbally say anything back, he only nodded and turned to follow Lea. He did though take a moment to look back at Isa. He wanted to try to say something, but he couldn't think of anything more to say. Isa's words from before still were echoing in his head. It seemed that Isa also had nothing more to say as he went back to looking through the books on the table. After a moment Vanitas turned away and walked out of the library and closed the door behind him. He stared down at the ground again as he sighed. A moment later he felt Lea place a hand on his head.</p><p>"Hey now, let's not let Isa get us down. The snow is still there, let's go out and see it," Lea said.</p><p>Vanitas just nodded as he followed behind Lea, though he now felt less sure about the whole thing than before. But he still wanted to try at least. They continued their walk until they reached one of the doors that lead out into a courtyard. The mansion had several courtyards throughout it, but like the outside of the mansion, it was overgrown and abandoned looking. Benches around the courtyard were either broken or eaten away by moss and other plants. A few statues remain, but pieces had been consumed by vines and leaves.</p><p>Vanitas stood in the doorway as Lea stepped outside. The cold brisk air brushed against Vanitas's face. He tensed up as the wind continued to nip at his face. He had never felt cold like that before. It was far colder than he had originally thought. And now… he had no idea how to feel about it… because he couldn't feel anything about it. And that was bothering him. He tried to take a moment to think of happy and enjoyable memories to try to give him some sense of what he could be feeling, but he couldn't bring anything to his mind.</p><p>He wanted to keep trying though. With a deep breath he stepped outside and his shoes crunched into the few inches of snow behind him. He walked around in the snow a little, trying to take everything in. Vanitas stared up at the sky and watched as snowflakes still fell down from the clouds above. He could feel the little bits of cold fall upon his face and melt slowly against him.</p><p>But he still couldn't find any reaction.</p><p>He couldn't find a way to pretend to be excited about snow.</p><p>This was something new entirely and he had no idea how to react at all.</p><p>And the emptiness inside just felt worse than ever now.</p><p>Vanitas stared down at the snow covered ground as he clenched his fists.</p><p>He heard snow crunching and saw that Lea was now standing next to him. "Hey, you ready to have some fun in the snow?"</p><p>Vanitas stared one more time at the snow falling around him. He took off one of his gloves and let a few snowflakes fall onto the palm of his hand. He watched as the snow slowly melted into water. It was an interesting sight for sure for Vanitas… but he still felt nothing at it.</p><p>Vanitas sighed as he placed his glove back on. "I can't do this…" He mumbled his words quietly as he looked away from Lea.</p><p>"What was that? I didn't hear you," Lea said.</p><p>"I said… I can't do this…" Vanitas restated.</p><p>"What do you mean you can't? Sure you can. You just start playing in the snow and all that. It's not that hard," Lea replied.</p><p>Vanitas sighed as he looked back at Lea. He prepared his next thoughts carefully. He thought of memories of emotion he could use to tell Lea just how he felt… or really wanted to feel.</p><p>Vanitas scrunched up his nose and furrowed his eyebrows. "I said I can't! I just can't do this! Without any emotion I can't understand how I am supposed to feel about all of this snow! And I hate that!"</p><p>"Hey, take it easy Van. It's okay," Lea said as he reached forward to place his hands on Vanitas's shoulders.</p><p>But before he could, Vanitas swatted his hands away and took a step back. "No! It's not okay. None of this is. It's not fair! I want to be able to enjoy the snow… I really do. But… I just can't feel anything. I just stare at the snow and nothing!"</p><p>Lea bit his lip as he thought over the situation. He tried his best to think of what he could say to Vanitas to get him to calm down and listen. He was still just a child after all, it was still hard for him to comprehend everything that happened to him.</p><p>"I know what Isa said before may still be bothering you… but why don't we-"</p><p>"No!" Vanitas shouted as loud as he could. "I don't want to hear anything else! I'm going back to my room…" Vanitas then ran right back towards the door and headed back towards his room.</p><p>Lea stood there as he watched Vanitas run off, a bit confused and surprised by the words said by the young boy. A long sigh was let out against the cold air. Lea watched as his breath formed from the coldness and then faded away into nothingness. He waited a few more minutes before deciding to head back inside to check on Vanitas.</p><p>Vanitas was already in his room, buried under his bed sheets and the winter clothes thrown across the floor. He had closed the curtains so he could no longer see the snow outside. He didn't want to think about any of that.</p><p>He wanted the emptiness to stop already. There were so many things that he wanted to have emotion for, but it was never going to happen. The emptiness just kept eating away inside at him. He tossed back and forth in his bed, hoping maybe somehow his emotions and feelings would come back to him. But of course, like the many other times he had tried, it just led to nothing, and the emptiness was still there.</p><p>Finally after a few minutes Vanitas calmed down and rested his head against his pillow. He stared off at the wall as he became lost in his thoughts over everything again. But soon he heard a knock on his door. He knew it just had to be Lea and Vanitas did not want to talk to him at the moment. He was frustrated with Lea now… well, he wanted to be frustrated with Lea. So Vanitas recalled as many angry memoires as he could before he answered.</p><p>"Go away Lea!" Vanitas shouted, trying to put as much tone as an emotionless person could into his voice.</p><p>"But Van…" Lea had started to say, but Vanitas didn't want to wait for him to finish.</p><p>"I said go away! I don't want to talk to you anymore," Vanitas grumbled.</p><p>There was a pause before he heard Lea speak up again. "Van… I'm sorry… But I-"</p><p>"I don't wanna hear it! I'm tired of you always trying to get me to keep on pretending. It just doesn't work! I can't <em>care</em> and so I don't <em>care</em>! So just leave me alone already…" Vanitas trailed off at the end there as he had lost the energy to keep up pretending to be angry.</p><p>"I'm sorry Vanitas. I'll leave you be now," Lea replied before Vanitas could hear Lea's footsteps trailing away from the door.</p><p>Normally Vanitas would expect to feel some anger or frustration over the whole ordeal, but by this point he was used to feeling nothing like always. He knew he should have been angry and he knew he wanted to feel that angry emotion… but just as Lea had told him… he could only pretend all of that.</p><p>But it was never the same.</p><p>It would never be the same.</p><p>But he still knew what he wished he could feel. And right now after he finally took in a deep breath, he knew what he wanted to feel. The minutes slowly ticked on by as Vanitas now just laid quietly in his bed as he thought things over and over again. But still at the end of every thought he knew what he wished he could feel.</p><p>He wanted to feel regret.</p><p>He already knew that he should not have yelled at Lea like that, but without the awful feeling of regret to push him to apologize, he didn't know what to do. So he decided to continue to lay in his bed for a while, trying to ignore the world outside.</p><p>He just wanted to ignore everything.</p><p>Maybe then… things could get easier.</p><p>But he still knew he had to do something about what he did before. He just needed time to think it through.</p><hr/><p>Lea walked down the hallway until he made it to the library. He went inside and saw that Isa was still there. Without saying a word Lea walked over to the table and sat down across from Isa. As soon as Lea plopped down into the chair Isa looked up and closed his book.</p><p>"I assume that everything didn't go how you wanted it?"</p><p>Lea scowled at Isa. "Don't you start…"</p><p>"But I did know that something like this would happen. Vanitas did not do well to see snow without having any emotions correct?" Isa asked.</p><p>Lea let out a long sigh. "I just wanted to try to help him…"</p><p>"But you were pushing on that too hard. While he may be a child, he is also a child who has lost his emotions. He is struggling to understand how to deal with it and you kept trying to get him to pretend like nothing had happened. You can't make him forget or pretend like he is still a normal child. That just isn't possible given the circumstances. You have to accept the fact that the kid is stuck just the same as us and there isn't anything you can do to change that," Isa stated as he held a stern and serious glare at Lea.</p><p>"Yeah yeah…. I know," Lea said as he sighed again. "I don't want to think about it anymore…"</p><p>Isa nodded as he went back to his book as he had nothing more to say. Lea just sat there, leaning back in the chair. Some time had passed and eventually the two heard the door open and someone walked it. Both of them looked over and saw that it was Vanitas. He didn't make any eye contact with either of them as he walked over to the table.</p><p>"Hey Van… Uh... " Lea started off, carefully thinking over his words now. He didn't know why Vanitas was here now or if he was still mad from before. "What's up?"</p><p>Vanitas slowly lifted his head and looked at Lea. "I'm sorry…"</p><p>"What?" Lea questioned. Vanitas being sorry was the last thing he expected him to say. "Why are you sorry? If anything… I am the one who should be sorry. I pushed you too much about pretending to have emotions."</p><p>"I know… Vanitas muttered. "But… I am sorry for yelling at you before. I was just… angry a little…"</p><p>Lea saw in the corner of his eye that Isa was about to speak up again. He knew Isa was about to make another remark, but Lea sent him a quick glare and thankfully Isa understood and kept quiet.</p><p>"It's okay. I'm still sorry for pushing you too much… I'll try not to do that anymore," Lea replied.</p><p>In the next moment Vanitas reached forward and wrapped his arms around Lea. "Thank you though… I know you were just trying to do what you thought was right. But… it's just too hard sometimes to pretend. I don't wanna do it all the time… I won't forget about the memories though like you said. I just don't wanna focus on pretending to have those emotions. I'll do my best to keep my humanity."</p><p>Lea smiled as he returned a hug back to Vanitas. "That's good to hear. I'm still sorry that I upset you before…"</p><p>"It's fine," Vanitas said as he looked up at Lea. "I think I understand why you were trying to do all that. Also… even though I may not try to pretend to have emotions much anymore...we can still be brothers… right?"</p><p>Lea continued to smile. "Of course we can."</p><p>Vanitas then let go of Lea and ran over to Isa, who was still quietly watching the whole conversation. Without any warning Vanitas threw his arms now around Isa, starting him a little.</p><p>"I know you like to be rude and said mean things Isa, but you are still my friend and brother too," Vanitas said as he did his best to smile at Isa.</p><p>Isa sighed and rolled his eyes, but he didn't make a rude comment like Vanitas and Lea had expected him to. Instead his actual form formed a small smile and placed a hand on top of Vanitas's head. He still didn't say anything though, but Vanitas could tell what Isa probably wanted to say.</p><p>It was still a hard life to get adjusted to, but Vanitas was still thankful that Lea and Isa were his friends. He knew that them being there would make things easier, but he had no idea what was to come in the next few years.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you to anyone who is reading this story. I know it is a strange concept, but I know whomever is reading this is enjoying it! </p><p>If you have any thoughts let me know and I will see you next chapter!!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Chapter 13</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Vanitas stood in his room as he looked out of the window. The sun had just begun to set, leaving a golden color across the sky. He stared at the beautiful array of colors until they slowly faded into a dark blue and the sun was nothing but distant residual light. Shifting his eye focus, he now looked at his reflection in the window rather than what was outside. Though a bit hard to see, he saw clearly how his face looked. No longer did he really have a young childish face, but instead a maturing face of a young man.</p><p>It had been four years now.</p><p>He had lived four years of his life in the cursed mansion. He had gotten used to it though by this point and had accepted the curse as it was. All the hopes that it was just a bad dream, and he would wake up safe at home, died out a long time ago. Despite all that, Vanitas would still find himself staring out a window from time to time. Staring out at the world that he could never reach anymore. When he found himself in moments like these, he couldn't help but let his mind wander a small bit.</p><p>"Ven…" Vanitas muttered quietly under his breath as he refocused his eyes to the sky again, now filling with more dark blue and a few shining stars. "What are you up now? Are you doing okay? You're in your second year of high school right? I wonder how that's going for you."</p><p>Vanitas would always ask himself these questions and more. Always asking questions that had to do with things and people in the outside world. But he knew there was really no point. He would never get those answers… but that still didn't mean he couldn't be a little curious about it. But even now… after four years… those curious thoughts were slowly dying out.</p><p>The temperature in the room dropped out of nowhere, but Vanitas wasn't too surprised by it. After four years of living in the mansion he knew what this meant. It meant that the master of the mansion wanted to get everyone's attention. Ansem was back. He was back from wherever and had something to say.</p><p>"<strong>Everyone is to report to the lobby in the next five minutes. I have something of importance to announce,"</strong> the deep, demonic voice echoed around the room.</p><p>As soon as the temperature in the room returned to normal Vanitas sighed and turned to head out the door of the room he had been standing in. Without any other thoughts he made his way down to the lobby where a few others were already waiting. Not giving a glance at any of them, Vanitas moved past the various people who were also trapped there until he spotted Isa and Lea.</p><p>"What do you guys think Ansem needs us all for?" Vanitas asked as he walked up to them.</p><p>It wasn't all too often that Ansem called everyone all together. Normally when he did decide to show his face it would be to one individually. But there were times where he held some kinds of meetings to talk about something, but it was always kept vague. Vanitas knew that there were probably some that knew what he meant or was really up to. Those who had been there longer tended to know more. But Vanitas didn't really care all too much for that. But the subject of the meeting was still left up to be wondered.</p><p>Lea shrugged. "Who knows. Probably going to give some speech about the supposed special plan he had been working on."</p><p>"I doubt it's really anything of true importance to us in particular. But to Ansem it must be something he sees worthy of telling us," Isa replied.</p><p>Vanitas sighed a little as he looked around the lobby, looking for where Ansem was going to show himself. Another minute had passed and soon everyone was in the lobby. There weren't a whole lot of people that were currently trapped in the mansion, but it was an average sized group in Vanitas mind. In his four years though he never really had gotten to know any of them really. He had spent his four years mostly hanging around Isa and Lea. He had tried a few times to talk to Ienzo, but their conversations never really went anywhere and Ienzo just preferred to be by himself most of the time.</p><p>"<strong>Good. You're all here now."</strong> Ansem said as he appeared into the room from a cloud of darkness. As soon as the darkness cloud vanished he shifted back into his human form and stood before everyone.</p><p>"You all are probably wondering why I have called you all here. Well I am here to announce something very special," Ansem said as he started his speech. "This is a wondrous day. Today we have a very special guest joining us today."</p><p>Vanitas heard some murmurs from some of the other people as everyone started to look around. Even though no one saw a new person amongst them, they all knew what Ansem meant. Ansem had brought someone here, just like Ienzo and a few others.</p><p>"Our newest guest," Ansem continued. "She will come to be of great importance to me and my goals. Now everyone, say hello to our most esteemed guest."</p><p>With the wave of his hand, darkness formed in front of him on the floor. It disappeared seconds later to reveal a young child, who clearly was terrified.</p><p>Everyone let out a gasp as soon as they saw her. She couldn't have been any older than four. Her hair was just past her chin and was a light blond color, and she wore a short ,white summer dress. She looked around with her big, bright blue eyes, looking like she could burst into tears any moment.</p><p>Vanitas subconsciously gritted his teeth as he narrowed his eyes at Ansem. "What the hell does he think he is doing?" he muttered under his breath. Vanitas started to take a step forward when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked back to see Lea looking at him and shaking his head.</p><p>"Don't Vanitas," Lea replied quickly.</p><p>"But she is just a little girl," Vanitas replied back.</p><p>"You should not interrupt Ansem though. You know that only will cause trouble for you," Isa added.</p><p>Vanitas was about to retort something else, but Ansem started up his speech again once he saw everyone was done gasping and murmuring.</p><p>"This child here is no ordinary child. She comes from a powerful white magic family and so I saw this as an opportunity. An opportunity to have her on my side to further help me with projects and goals."</p><p>"But she's only a child!" Vanitas shouted as he stepped forward, out of Lea's grasp.</p><p>Ansem stared over at Vanitas for a moment before he smiled coldly. "Yes she is. But that make things easier as I can now raise her to do as I say."</p><p>"Don't you think her family will notice she is gone? You can't just steal children like that," Vanitas said as he took another step forward.</p><p>One thing he was glad about with not having emotions, is that he didn't hold anything back. He could say what he wanted and not be afraid. But of course he also knew there could be downsides to that. He knew he was being risked at the moment, standing up to Ansem, but he couldn't help himself. As soon as he saw the small, young girl, he wished he could feel anger. How could Ansem all too casual just take a child away from her home and trap her with a curse? Vanitas knew if he could still feel emotions, he would feel sick to his stomach at Ansem but also a lot of anger.</p><p>Ansem chuckled as he crossed his arms. "No they won't notice. I made sure of that. Her family won't… ever be a problem."</p><p>Vanitas's eyes widened. He didn't need the full confirmation from Ansem to know what he had done. He didn't expect anything less from the guy, but it still bothered him.</p><p>"But why… How could you? You really are going to do to her what you've done to the rest of us?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"Of course. Everyone in my mansion lives under the same curse, and that will go the same for her," Ansem said as he gestured to the girl, who still sat there frozen with fear. "All of this is for my plans, it must be done."</p><p>"No!" Vanitas shouted, trying to bring as much anger into his voice as he could. "You can't do that to her!"</p><p>Ansem stared long and hard at Vanitas, as his expression changed into something cold and unamused. This time it was Ansem who took a step forward, a step closer to Vanitas.</p><p>"Are you really trying to tell me what to do?" Ansem asked as the tone of his voice deepened into something more sinister.</p><p>Without flinching or stepping back Vanitas took one last step forward. He was now less than a foot away from Ansem. For one moment he took the chance and looked down at the young girl, who was staring with wide eyes at him. She hadn't once tried to move from her spot, and Vanitas could only figure that Ansem must have her stuck in place with magic. He still couldn't believe Ansem would bring someone that young here. He then focused his gaze back to Ansem. "I won't let you curse her."</p><p>Ansem smiled cruelly as he chuckled. "Such confidence and seriousness for someone lacking emotion."</p><p>Ansem's hand then reached out around Vanitas's neck and lifted him slightly off the ground. Vanitas stifled a gasp, but other than that he didn't give much other reaction. He couldn't give any reaction. Without emotion, there was no way to convey the fear that he should have been having at that moment.</p><p>"You know though…" Ansem growled angrily. "It is unwise to try to use that as an advantage. You know very well that you are not to speak out against me. Ever."</p><p>Without giving Vanitas a chance to respond, Ansem threw him across the room with strength that no mortal man would have. But of course, he was no longer a mortal man. Vanitas crashed forcefully onto the floor, sliding slightly before his back hit the wall.</p><p>Vanitas groaned as he tried to push himself up into a sitting position, but his body was aching too much. He let out a sigh as he tried to deal with the pain that was now burning through his body. He could still feel the pain of course… but he couldn't react properly anymore to it, so it just felt a hundred times worse.</p><p>"Now that we've taken care of that," Ansem said as he faced the group. "Is there anyone else who dares to speak up about this?"</p><p>The entire group remained silent, with only a few glancing over to Vanitas, who was still laying on the ground.</p><p>"Good. Now let us continue with welcoming our newest, most esteemed guest," Ansem said before shifting back into his demonic form.</p><p>"No…" Vanitas muttered quietly through his pain.</p><p>The little girl stared at Ansem once he had changed forms and let out a terrified shriek. The vines of darkness wrapped around her as she was lifted off the ground. The girl struggled in the vines and continued to cry out for help. No one said a word though, everyone remained quiet as they watched. Though most turned their heads away at the moment the girl's screaming got louder. No one truly wanted to see this happen, but they had no choice in the matter.</p><p>Vanitas finally pushed himself up into a proper sitting position as he Ansem pull out the glowing heart from the little girl. The girl now was unconscious and Ansem held her in his arms once he made the heart disappear. He headed over to Vanitas and placed the girl in front of him.</p><p>"<strong>Since you were so intent on trying to interrupt before, I am placing you in charge of watching over the girl,"</strong> Ansem said as he glared down at Vanitas.</p><p>Vanitas didn't say anything back, his eyes only were focused on the girl. Suddenly Vanitas's hair was yanked, as his head was forcefully tilted up to look at Ansem.</p><p>"<strong>I said, you are to take care of this child. Is that understood?"</strong></p><p>Vanitas let out one sigh before he responded. "Yes…"</p><p>Ansem chuckled as he released Vanitas's from his grasp. "<strong>Good. Now,"</strong> he turned to face everyone again. "<strong>Remember this child is a valued asset to me. Let's all make sure to make her stay here… </strong><em><strong>enjoyable.</strong></em></p><p>There was of course no verbal response from anyone in the group. No one knew what to say after seeing something like that. What else could they even do? All of them knew to be careful of what they said or did around Ansem. The only thing they could do was nod their head slowly.</p><p>"<strong>The girl's room shall be the master suite. Our esteemed guest here deserves the best," </strong>Ansem said with a chuckle. "<strong>Now you may all return to your day."</strong> And with that Ansem vanished from the room.</p><p>It took almost a minute, but soon the other people started to move around ahead and headed off towards other areas of the mansion. Once all the others were left, the only ones left in the lobby were Lea, Isa, Vanitas and the little girl. Vanitas slowly reached forward and picked up the girl. He sat there quietly as he held her gently in his arms.</p><p>"Well… I am sure that wasn't what anyone was expecting," Lea said as he and Isa approached Vanitas.</p><p>"No it wasn't… but then again it wasn't completely out of the ordinary either," Isa said.</p><p>Once they were standing in front of Vanitas, they saw that he seemed to be trying to pretend he had emotion again. A disheartened look was trying to show upon his face as he did not take his eyes off the girl.</p><p>"You okay Van?" Lea asked.</p><p>"She's just so young… I can't… I can't believe he would do something like this," Vanitas replied.</p><p>Lea sighed heavily. "I know… It's awful to think about…"</p><p>"But what's done is done, and there isn't anything we can do about that," Isa stated blatantly. As always Isa stated the obvious in the bluntest way possible. Vanitas had learned to deal with that from Isa, but it still annoyed him ever so slightly from time to time.</p><p>"She's also…" Vanitas sighed for a moment as he trailed off, not knowing how to continue his thoughts.</p><p>"Also what?" Lea asked.</p><p>"She also looks about the same age as my younger sibling would be," Vanitas finally said.</p><p>"You know she is not your sibling though, correct?" Isa asked. "It is highly unlikely and plus we already know you don't come from a family that uses white magic."</p><p>"I know that," Vanitas grumbled. "But still… It's still the age. I just… I don't know…"</p><p>"Well… there isn't much we can do besides trying to make her life here comfortable," Lea said.</p><p>Vanitas nodded as he stood up, still holding the girl in his arms. "I'll take her to the room...by myself. I'll… I'll try my best to explain things to her."</p><p>"Are you sure you don't want us to help? Well mainly me as I think Isa might scare her too much," Lea said as he chuckled slightly, trying to lighten the dreary mood that had entered the room.</p><p>Vanitas shook his head. "No… It's fine…" He then turned and headed up the stairs without another word.</p><p>Once he was out of the lobby Lea decided to speak up again. "What do you think Ansem has planned for her? Taking a young girl from her home just because she has magic? Just what is he thinking?"</p><p>"We shouldn't think too much about it. It's not something he wants us to know about obviously," Isa replied.</p><p>"Yeah but still… that poor girl. She barely had any time in her life to really understand emotions… and now it has been all stripped away."</p><p>"Well…" Isa started to say, but then the rest of his words never came. He just couldn't think of a logical thing to say back to Lea on the subject. Neither of them wanted to see a little girl in the mansion… but it wasn't their choice on what happened. "Let's just head back to what we were doing before."</p><p>The two then headed off back to where they were before this event had taken place. Meanwhile Vanitas entered the master suite room of the mansion. It was the largest of all the bedrooms within the mansion, but had little furniture actually within the room. There was a bed and a dresser, a large table in the center, and even a door leading to a master bathroom.</p><p>Vanitas glanced around the room for a bit before he headed over to the bed and placed the girl down on it. She started to stir slightly as she turned onto her side. Vanitas at least knew what was going to happen. Lea and Isa had explained all of it to him long ago when he had first come there. The girl was going to wake up for a short bit, trying to adjust to not having emotions, but then she would sleep for a little while, after having to experience something so traumatizing as Ansem ripping out her emotions.</p><p>Vanitas pulled up a chair from the table next to the bed and sat down, just as the girl opened her eyes.</p><p>"Where...Where am I?" she asked quietly. She then looked at Vanitas. She sat up and crawled to the edge of the bed. "You. I know you."</p><p>"Hey there…" Vanitas said as he tried to smile at the little girl. Trying to hope that explaining everything wouldn't be as hard as he thought it would be.</p><p>The girl frowned a little as she got closer to Vanitas's face. "You're hurt… You okay?"</p><p>"What?" Vanitas asked. The girl pointed at him and he reached his hand up and felt his forehead. There was a brief moment of pain and when he pulled his hand back he saw some blood on his fingertips. He knew he probably had gotten injured from when Ansem had thrown him… but with what happened he had forgotten all about checking to see if he was all right.</p><p>"Let me help," the girl said as she held out a hand right in front of Vanitas's face. A light green glow formed around her fingers and soon it spread out towards Vanitas. Within seconds, any remaining pain he felt was gone. When he checked his forehead again after she had finished, there was no more pain or blood.</p><p>"How… How did you do that?" Vanitas asked, surprised at the little girl.</p><p>"Mommy taught me how to heal. It was the first magic spell I learned," the girl explained before she frowned again. "Where's… Where's my mommy?"</p><p>"I...I don't know how to explain this… but…" Vanitas trailed off, afraid how the girl would react if he told her the truth… Even if she didn't have emotions now he didn't think she would be able to understand anyways.</p><p>"I wanna go home!" the girl shouted as tears fell from her face, but she wasn't actually crying. This was something Vanitas at least knew would happen as he had done the same thing when he first arrived.</p><p>He moved from sitting on the chair to the bed and wrapped one arm around the girl, trying to give her some comfort. "I'm sorry… It may be hard to understand… But… you won't be able to go back home."</p><p>"Why not?" the girl asked as she looked up at Vanitas. "Is it… what the scary monster man said?"</p><p>Vanitas was about to ask what she meant, but then realized she was talking about Ansem. He noticed she shuddered slightly after saying it. Even without emotions the memory of him being there in front of her was still in her mind.</p><p>"Yeah… what the scary monster man said. But…" Vanitas paused as he thought of something else to talk about with her. "What's your name? I don't think you've told me yet."</p><p>"Namine," the girl replied quietly. "What your name?</p><p>"Vanitas."</p><p>Namine smiled a little. "That's a funny sounding name."</p><p>Vanitas looked down at the girl, he thought of happy memories that made it easier to smile back at her. "Thanks."</p><p>Namine then let out a yawn, indicating that she was needing to sleep now. Vanitas slowly stood up while still keeping eye contact with her. "Well… Um… You probably are sleepy. So you should sleep… and we can talk more in the morning, okay?"</p><p>Vanitas was just ready to turn and leave when Namine grabbed his wrist. "No… Don't leave…"</p><p>"Why?" Vanitas asked as he looked back at Namine.</p><p>"I don't want to be alone. What if the scary monster man comes back?" Namine asked as her eyes widened.</p><p>Even without emotion, Vanitas could see that she was trying to be scared. She would have been scared if she still had them. But to a young mind she couldn't understand that she wasn't actually feeling scared. Vanitas had to remind himself that she was only about four years old; the youngest one ever to be trapped in the mansion. Of course she wouldn't wanna be left alone, regardless of having emotions or not.</p><p>"You'd like it better if I stayed here with you?" Vanitas asked as he sat back down on the bed.</p><p>Namine nodded. "Yup. You were the only one ot have talked back to the scary monster man. You were brave. Thank you." Namine leaned forward and hugged Vanitas tightly.</p><p>Vanitas sighed as he smiled a little again. "You're welcome." He placed a hand on top of Namine's head as she continued her hug. Soon she let out another yawn and let go of Vanitas.</p><p>"Come on now, it's late for you. Let's get some sleep," Vanitas said as he pulled back the covers of the bed for Namine to crawl under. Vanitas then laid down next to Namine as he watched her quickly fall asleep.</p><p>"<em>I wonder…"</em> Vanitas began to think to himself. "<em>Is this what it would be like...if I was home… with my own sibling? Maybe… maybe this won't be all bad. I guess I finally get to be a big brother now." </em>Vanitas carefully pulled the covers up over Namine. "<em>I'll watch over you Namine. I'll protect you. I'll be your big brother."</em></p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>And now we know how Namine got there. The "why" though? Still a mystery!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Chapter 14</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Vanitas woke up the following morning with a yawn. He blinked as his eyes adjusted to the light streaming into the room. It took him a moment, but he remembered that he was not in his own room, he was in Namine's.</p><p>Vanitas's eyes then shifted down to see Namine snuggled up against him. Staring at her, sleeping so peacefully and calmly, Vanitas started thinking as to why Ansem would want her here. He knew that Ansem said that she came from a white magic family and she clearly showed she had that power last night, but he still couldn't figure out why. Ansem already had his own power and magic, why did he need someone else's? Vanitas just couldn't seem to grasp at a good solid reason.</p><p>He sighed as he placed a hand on top of Namine's head as he sat himself up. Though it had been four years since he had really thought about emotions of feelings, he started to wonder again. He wondered what he would be feeling right now aside from feeling bad that she was trapped here. He wanted to know what feeling like a big brother would actually feel like. Since he never got the chance to experience it, he didn't know how he would be feeling. He only knew it was probably a happy feeling… but even that to him felt faint now.</p><p>Namine stirred and her eyes slowly opened up. She looked up and blinked a few times at Vanitas. "Hello Vanitas. Morning."</p><p>"Good morning Namine. How… How are you… feeling?" Vanitas asked. He knew that she wouldn't actually be feeling anything, but she would be too young to understand. He thought it would be best to wait a bit before trying to explain it to her. A little four year old would not be able to understand that she couldn't feel emotions anymore. Something like that would be too hard for her young mind to comprehend.</p><p>"I...I'm fine. I think," Namine said as she sat up. "I'm still here? Why?"</p><p>Vanitas sighed. "It's hard to explain that… But this is your home now."</p><p>"With the scary monster man? Why? Why did he take me away?" Namine asked as she clung onto Vanitas's jacket.</p><p>"I can't really tell you that. You wouldn't understand," Vanitas started to say, but then Namine spoke up again.</p><p>"Why? It's not fair!" Namine said as she pouted.</p><p>Vanitas thought carefully and slowly reached his arms around Namine and held her close. He knew it really wouldn't truly do much to help her, but knew it was the best he could do. "I know it isn't. But we can't do anything about it. But don't worry Namine, I'm here for you."</p><p>"You live here too? What about the scary monster man?" Namine asked.</p><p>"Yeah I live here. I've been here about four years… but it isn't all that bad. Ansem… I mean the scary monster man isn't around all too much. And then there are all the others here as well, so we aren't all by ourselves," Vanitas responded, hoping to ease her mind on things.</p><p>"Why though?" Namine asked. "Why are you in a scary place like this?"</p><p>Vanitas sighed again. It was getting difficult for him to come up with things to tell her. He didn't want to have to tell her the truth, but he had a feeling he might have to if she kept asking about it. The best thing he thought he could do was try to divert the conversation. He then finally let go of Namine before speaking again.</p><p>"I'll tell you later. Hey, are you hungry? How about we get some food?"</p><p>"Yeah food. Let's get some," Namine said as she hopped off the bed.</p><p>Vanitas felt relieved as he also got off the bed. As soon as he stood up Namine grabbed onto one of his hands. She didn't say anything more, but she stared right up at him. The expression on her face showed how worried and scared she was… or really would be.</p><p>"It's okay Namine. I'm here for you," Vanitas said as he started walking towards the door.</p><p>Namine nodded as they stepped outside into the hallway. Immediately she started looking all around, afraid that Ansem could show up at any moment. Her grip tightened around Vanitas's hand as she stayed close to him. Vanitas bit his lip as they walked down the hallway. He had no idea what he could say or do to try and calm her down. Even without emotions, she still acted so afraid of the place she was in.</p><p>Vanitas though guided her slowly through the hallway until they arrived at the kitchen. Isa and Lea were already there at one of the tables. There were also a couple of others there, but Vanitas never really talked to them much. Vanitas led Namine over to the table where Isa and Lea sat.</p><p>As soon as they got close to the table, Lea looked over at them. "Well there you guys are. We were wondering when you might show up."</p><p>Namine quickly hid behind Vanitas and gripped onto his clothes tightly. Vanitas placed a hand gently on top of Namine's head. "You don't have to be afraid, Namine. Lea and Isa are my friends. They are nice people."</p><p>Namine slowly peaked from behind Vanitas's legs and looked over at Lea first. He gave her a smile and waved. "Nice to meet you Namine. So you heard right, my name's Lea, got it memorized?"</p><p>Namine shifted slightly as she stepped to the side to get a better look at Isa and Lea. Lea then pointed to Isa, who was sitting next to him. "And Mr Boring over here is Isa."</p><p>After a moment Namine slowly stepped forward and climbed up onto a chair at the table. "Hello…" she spoke quietly, but did not seem as afraid as before.</p><p>"You can sit here Namine, I'll grab you something to eat," Vanitas said as he entered the kitchen area.</p><p>As Vanitas started to make some food for Namine, he turned to see her engaging in some conversation with Lea. Vanitas thought it was good at least that she seemed to have warmed up to Lea at least. Once the food was ready, he brought it back to the table and sat down next to Namine.</p><p>"Where do you live, Vanitas?" Namine suddenly asked him.</p><p>"Huh? Where did a question like that come from?" Vanitas asked her.</p><p>"That's 'cause of me," Lea interjected. "I was telling her about how Isa and I are from Radiant Garden, which is known for its large castle. Namine got all excited and asked if you were from there as well, and I told her just to ask you instead."</p><p>"Ah," Vanitas said as he looked at Namine. "Well I'm actually from Destiny Islands."</p><p>"Des...ta..ney… Islands?" Namine asked, trying her best to pronounce the word destiny.</p><p>"That's right. It's a place right by the ocean with many islands you can go and visit," Vanitas explained.</p><p>Namine's eyes lit up. "Oh! By the ocean? That sounds really pretty! I always wanted to see the ocean!"</p><p>Vanitas wanted to smile at her energy. He wished he could be happy for her wanting to see the ocean, but he knew he couldn't. There was no way she would ever get to see the ocean now that she was trapped inside the mansion. But he didn't want to crush the determination that she held in her eyes. It still amazed him how much it seemed like she still had emotions, even though he knew that she wasn't actually feeling what she was displaying.</p><p>With a small sigh he placed his hand on her head. "Well… maybe you will."</p><p>"Do not try to fill her mind with false-" Isa had started to say before Lea jabbed him in the side. Lea sent him a sharp glare, indicating that now was not the time to be cold and direct about those things. Thankfully Isa understood and went back to not saying anything.</p><p>Everything seemed to go smoothly after that. Food was eaten and Namine didn't ask too many questions. Once things were finished Vanitas told Namine he would show her around the mansion. She nodded in interest and started to follow right beside Vanitas. They had only walked down one hallway when the temperature dropped around them.</p><p>"Vanitas? Why did we stop? It feels cold. Why is that?" Namine asked him as she looked up.</p><p>Before Vanitas could answer, a darkness appeared in front of them. A second later Ansem appeared in his demonic form. Namine gasped as she hid behind Vanitas. Vanitas took in a deep breath as he stared at the monster before him. He had no idea what Ansem could want at a time like this, but he could tell it was nothing good.</p><p>"What do you want Ansem?" Vanitas asked.</p><p>"<strong>I was looking for where the girl was. I wanted to make sure she has awoken nicely,"</strong> Ansem replied, trying to sound caring.</p><p>"Yeah she has. Now you can leave her alone," Vanitas said as he kept his eyes locked with Ansem's.</p><p>"<strong>I cannot do that yet. You see, I am needing the girl for a short time today."</strong></p><p>"No way," Vanitas said as he made sure Namine was still behind him. "I won't let you touch her."</p><p>"<strong>But you do not understand. I need her. That is why I brought her here."</strong></p><p>"Why is that then? Why did you bring a young child to the mansion? What reason do you have for that?" Vanitas asked, hoping that maybe he would get a little insight on why Ansem did what he did.</p><p>"<strong>It is because the girl has strong magical powers. Her magic is the type I need to accomplish certain tasks,"</strong> Ansem replied much to Vanitas's surprise. He didn't expect Ansem to actually give him an actual answer.</p><p>"Don't you have your own magic or something? Why can't you just use yours?" Vanitas questioned.</p><p>"<strong>It is because my magic differs from the girls. Her magic is white magic, which is far different than the type that I use."</strong></p><p>"But why her," Vanitas continued to question. "Why take a child at such a young age?"</p><p>Ansem loomed a bit closer to Vanitas. His demonic eyes glowed brightly. "<strong>It is because...with her being so young… it makes it easier to teach her in the ways that I want."</strong></p><p>Vanitas narrowed his eyes. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Ansem stole his little girl away from her home all so he could train her to use magic how he wanted? There had to be more to it than just that. Vanitas knew that much at least. But he didn't want to question any further. He had enough answers for now. But now he wanted to keep Namine away from Ansem even more than before.</p><p>Before Vanitas could say another word, Namine ended up speaking. "Leave me alone! Only mommy teaches me magic!"</p><p>Ansem chuckled deeply, clearly finding Namine amusing. "<strong>How intriguing. For a child who barely has had time to experience emotions, she fakes it the best. But…"</strong> He loomed over both Vanitas and Namine. "<strong>I will teach you magic and you will listen to me."</strong></p><p>Namine frowned as she gripped Vanitas's shirt tightly. "No! I don't wanna!"</p><p>"Leave her alone Ansem. If she doesn't want to go with you, you can't force her. I am not going to let you take her now."</p><p>"<strong>This is my mansion. What I say goes. If you do not let me have the girl...I will have to use… more serious measures. Would you prefer it if the girl was a completely empty husk?"</strong></p><p>"What?"</p><p>"<strong>If neither of you choose to cooperate, I will be forced to get what I need by force. If I so choose I can erase all of her memories of her little life. It would leave her completely empty. Perfect for molding however I please."</strong></p><p>Vanitas started with wide eyes. "<em>Erase her memories? He… he can do that?"</em> Vanitas glanced down at Namine. Seeing her big round eyes look up at him with confusion, he knew he never wanted to see something like that happen to her. Even though he had only known her for less than a day, he wanted to do what he could to protect her.</p><p>"I'm not going to let you hurt her though," Vanitas replied, keeping his strong determined look, hoping that maybe Anse would back off.</p><p>"<strong>I do not intend to hurt the girl,"</strong> Ansem said before his form started to shift. Seconds later he was back in his human form. "The girl is my honored guest here. She shall remain unharmed and will be well taken care of. All I need is for her to cooperate and let me teach her."</p><p>Vanitas took in a deep breath as he thought over the situation. He still did not want to trust Ansem, but he didn't want to let Namine lose her memories. They may only be a few, but they were all she could hold onto from her life for emotions. He wanted her to have at least a little something to hold on to. Suddenly Vanitas had an idea that he thought might just work.</p><p>"You'll have to let me stay by her side as you teach her whatever the heck you wanna teach her. You put me in charge of her so I say I get to stay with her and make sure you don't harm her.</p><p>"Yeah! Let Vanitas stay!" Namine retorted.</p><p>Ansem crossed his arms as he examined the two that stood before him. His eyes locked onto Vanitas and then shifted down to Namine. His eyes narrowed slightly before he gave his answer. "Very well, I suppose I can accommodate that. I will allow you to watch over our training sessions."</p><p>Vanitas breathed out a sigh of relief. He then turned around and kneel down to Namine's eye level. "All right Namine. I know you find Ansem scary, but you are just going to have to listen to him for now. I promise I'll be right by your side though. Do you understand?"</p><p>Namine nodded slowly. "I understand."</p><p>Ansem turned around and spoke up. "Now, you two shall follow me. " He then started to walk down the hallway.</p><p>Vanitas held his hand out to Namine and she tightly took hold of it. The two of them quietly followed after Ansem.</p><hr/><p>
  <em>A Few Months Later</em>
</p><p>A loud thunderstorm rumbled outside. Every once and a while a flash of light would bled through the curtains. Vanitas grumbled as he turned on his side, facing away from the window. He had slept through plenty of storms in his life, the biggest ones being back when he was home in Destiny Islands. But for some reason he just was having trouble falling asleep tonight.</p><p>Though after a few minutes it seemed that Vanitas was finally drifting off. But then he heard his door open. He groaned in annoyance. He had no idea what time it was, but he figured it was around or past midnight at least by this point.</p><p>Vanitas turned back to his other side and to his surprise saw Namine standing in front of his bed. She stood there and looked at him with wide eyes. "Vanitas?" she asked him, as if not sure if he was awake or not.</p><p>"Namine?" Vanitas asked as he slightly sat up in his bed. "What's wrong?"</p><p>"I don't know… The storm is scary. I can't sleep," Namine replied.</p><p>"Oh… I see," Vanitas said. He had a feeling it may have been that, though Namine showed no sign of being afraid. Vanitas figured though it was something in her subconscious that kept her awake. If she still were to have emotions, the storm surely would have made her scared.</p><p>"Can I stay with you?" Namine asked as she inched closer to the bed. "I don't wanna sleep alone with the scary storm outside."</p><p>Vanitas was almost half tempted to tell her that it didn't matter. That, without emotions, she couldn't actually be afraid of a storm. But he remembered she was a young child. She still would not understand. He did still want to look out for her though as a brotherly figure, so that meant he had to do what was best.</p><p>Vanitas nodded as he scooted himself back on the bed. "Sure."</p><p>Namine crawled up onto the bed and got under the covers. She snuggled right up against Vanitas and closed her eyes. "Thank you Vani," Namine replied quietly.</p><p>"What?" Vanitas asked aloud, not expecting to hear her say that. "You can't… You can't call me that…"</p><p>Namine looked up at him and tilted her head. "Why not? Isn't it short for Vanitas?"</p><p>"Yeah it is…" Vanitas sighed slightly. "But only one person can call me Vani."</p><p>"Who? Is it Isa? He doesn't say your name much does he? Or Ienzo?" Namine asked, suddenly very curious about the answer.</p><p>Vanitas shook his head. "No. The person who calls me Vani isn't here at the mansion. He didn't get trapped here like the rest of us. He...He's a childhood friend of mine."</p><p>"What's his name?"</p><p>"Ven… Ventus…" Vanitas said.</p><p>"Oh I see. So I can't also call you Vani?" Namine asked.</p><p>"I'd prefer if you didn't. Ven was the only one to call me by that name...it's just a special memory from my childhood I guess you could say."</p><p>"Ooh. I'm sorry Vanitas. I didn't mean to upset you."</p><p>Vanitas shook his head. "No you didn't. It's okay. Let's just try to get some sleep now, okay?"</p><p>Namine nodded as she laid back down on the bed. Vanitas yawned as he closed his eyes, ready to finally fall asleep.</p><p>"Vanitas?" Namine asked not a minute later.</p><p>"Yes?"</p><p>"Why… Why am I not scared?"</p><p>Vanitas's eyes widened slightly. He never expected Namine to ask such a question. Had she been thinking about what had happened to her? Vanitas wasn't sure if he would be able to give her a proper answer on the subject. "What do you mean?"</p><p>"I'm not scared of the storm… though I remember when I was home with mommy and daddy I was scared. But not now."</p><p>"Well that's because…" Vanitas started to say. He hadn't expected to have to tell Namine about this so soon. He didn't know how to avoid the conversation, so he decided to just try his best to explain it to her now. "It's… the mansion has a curse."</p><p>"Curse?"</p><p>"Yeah… that's right. It takes away our ability to feel scared, or angry, or happy… " Vanitas explained, hoping this simplified version was enough to help her understand.</p><p>"But why? Why does the mansion do that?"</p><p>"I…" Vanitas started to explain it was Ansem's doing, but then he stopped himself. He figured if he told Namine it was Ansem who did it, it would only make her more hesitant to have him train her with magic.</p><p>She still was not too inclined to learn magic from Ansem, but Vanitas was always right there to watch. It seemed to make things easier for Namine knowing that he was near her if she needed.</p><p>Slowly Vanitas wrapped his arms around Namine and pulled her closer. "I can't really explain it right now. But, I will one day, okay? Just try not to think about it. Let's just get some sleep now," Vanitas said in hopes that Namine would listen.</p><p>"Okay…" Namine said as she yawned. "Thank you Vanitas."</p><hr/><p>
  <em>Present Day</em>
</p><p>Vanitas stared off at the window and let out a long sigh. "After that not much of major interest happened. Namine learned the magic that Ansem wanted to teach her. He had her use that magic for whatever the hell he wanted. Making the barrier around the mansion stronger and various other crappy things."</p><p>"And you watched over her all these years?" Ventus asked, still very invested and curious about the stories Vanitas had just told him.</p><p>Vanitas nodded. "Yeah. I knew I had to do that, whether Ansem told me to or not. I doubt any else really would have wanted to help her get through her life here, except maybe Lea."</p><p>"So really nothing else happened?"</p><p>"Well there were other things, like the time I spoke out again to Ansem 'cause I thought he was pushing Namine too hard. He broke my arm, but Namine healed it shortly after. But I feel like I've said enough, I'm sure you get the premise of everything."</p><p>Ventus nodded. "Yeah I understand now." He then paused for a moment before speaking up again. "I still am sorry though... I still feel responsible for you getting trapped here."</p><p>Vanitas sighed. "I already told you not to be sorry. It's complicated you know? If I never was trapped here, Namine wouldn't really have someone that looked out for her. She is really the only positive thing I can say that comes from all this. Looking after her like a brother for all these years…and all that stuff."</p><p>"Ah… I see," Ventus said, trailing off slightly. "Do you wanna hear about my life and what I did?"</p><p>"I don't know… maybe later," Vanitas replied.</p><p>The two young men then sat in silence in the room. Neither of them knew what to say next. It had been fourteen years since they last saw each other, and now it felt hard to start a conversation.</p><p>But then an idea came to Ventu's mind. He leaned forward and wrapped his arms around Vanitas, giving him a hug.</p><p>Vanitas gasped in surprise. "Ventus? Seriously? Another hug?"</p><p>Ventus put on a smile. "What? I can't help it. Hugs are just in my nature I guess. Besides it's been fourteen years, I've missed out on a lot of hugs."</p><p>"But Ven… we're grown men. We don't… hug," Vanitas commented. He knew he would have felt embarrassed for sure if he still had emotions.</p><p>Ventus let go of Vanitas and looked at him. "Who says we can't? Best friends can still give each other hugs. We're… still friends right?"</p><p>Vanitas looked back at Ventus. Without even thinking a smile came to his face. It was just a natural thing for him to do when around Ventus. Ever since they were young Ventus always could find a way to make him smile, mostly cause Ventus was doing something goofy or dumb. But the more Vanitas thought about it, he did guess that Ventus had a point.</p><p>Before Ventus could say anything more, Vanitas pulled him into a hug, catching him completely off guard. "Yeah, we're still friends."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Chapter 15</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Roxas stared at his laptop, scanning everything carefully. He read over the paragraph several times, hoping to have noticed something he missed before. But what he had to read was very little, and very encrypted.</p><p>All morning long Roxas and his friends had been hard at work. Since their talk they spend as much time as they could look into what they could find about Ansem and the mansion. They did not have the highest of hopes when they began their search. There was very little information than they had to go on. But they were not ready to give up easily. They were going to try as hard as they could.</p><p>And even though the information they found was small, they managed to find something. It also helped that Pence did his best to dig through most of the heavy encrypted stuff. With his help, they were able to gain access to hidden files with rather interesting information.</p><p>"We've found plenty of information on Ansem now," Kairi said as she kept reading through what she had on her laptop. "It looks like he was always a mysterious man, even when he created the mansion. Back before the mansion closed, he always kept to himself and for sometimes days straight he would go to the basement of the mansion. None of the workers would see him at all for those days, so no one knew what he was doing."</p><p>"We can assume though he may have been working with dark magic stuff," Roxas added, thinking back to what Namine told him. "He must have been working on whatever made him immortal or what turned him into that monster."</p><p>"Speaking of that, I was looking up stuff about dark magic and possibly anything about the creature you described that Ansem was," Riku started to say. "It looks like even back in Ansem's time dark magic, or actually magic overall, was already a dying thing. People were forgetting about it and moving on with the times. Seems Ansem wasn't wanting to let that go."</p><p>"But why was he using dark magic? For what purpose?" Roxas asked.</p><p>"I don't think we are going to find anything about that on here. If none of the workers at the mansion knew what he was up to, I doubt there is much we can find," Sora answered.</p><p>"But," he continued a second later. "The creature that Ansem made himself into… it looks like it is based on an actual mythical monster or something…"</p><p>Sora turned his laptop around for the other three to see. "I found this online version of an old book that is filled with information about ancient and mythical creatures from way back when."</p><p>On the screen showed an old sketchy drawing of a dark demonic creature. The more Roxas looked, the more he could see that it did resemble what Ansem looked like. He then started to read the passage that went with the picture aloud.</p><p>"This monster of darkness was one of the most dangerous of all creatures. Old folk tales told of this terrifying creature and how it snuck around at night through unsuspecting villages. It was looking for the hearts of people to steal, more specifically the heart of a person's emotions. For that heart of a person was what the monster needed to sustain its strength and powers."</p><p>Roxas gasped. He leaned back in his chair as he placed a hand against his face. "That's how he must have lived this long. Not just because of the dark magic, but also because of the creature he transformed himself into. And that's why he needs hearts… to keep his powers strong so he can keep living."</p><p>"But there has to be a way to stop him right? These old folk tales always have these monsters, but there is usually a way to defeat them. Like a silver bullet for a werewolf, or cross for a vampire," Kairi suggested.</p><p>"There is, it's just a little farther down in the article," Sora said as he turned his laptop back towards himself. "I think I need to do a bit more looking, but what it says is that to destroy this monster, a weapon made from the light."</p><p>"Made from the light?" Riku asked.</p><p>"That's what it says," Sora replied. "So I'm guessing since this creature was from a time when magic was relevant, I assume it means a weapon with light magic or something."</p><p>"You keep doing that then, there's gotta be something we could find. Magic may have been forgotten pretty much by the people, but it's still gotta be out there," Roxas said. "Namine is around our age and she can use magic. So it still has to exist."</p><p>Everyone nodded before going back to look for more information. After a few minutes Roxas's cell phone rang. He checked the caller I.D. and saw that it was Pence. He picked it up and put it into speaker mode, so the others could hear what Pence had to say.</p><p>"Hey Pence, you're on speaker, what's up," Roxas said.</p><p>"<em>Hi guys. So I was doing more digging, and I came across one article that was majorly encrypted and I think possibly corrupted. It's another old article that was uploaded, but the data has been messed with. But I managed to pull some of it together… and it's really interesting. I'm sending you a link to your email now."</em></p><p>Roxas turned around and pulled open the tab to his email and clicked on the new one from Pence. When he clicked the link he was brought to an old looking website with a small article being displayed. Most of the words though were unreadable and missing.</p><p>"<em>I know most of it you won't be able to read. I tried my hardest to restore it, but this one gave me the most trouble. But there is one picture there and the caption beneath it gives enough in my opinion,"</em> Pence said.</p><p>Roxas looked through the article to find it, while Kairi, Riku, and Sora looked over his shoulder. Soon a picture came up onto the screen. It was an old, black and white, grainy photograph, but the four could tell that it was outside of the mansion. Two young, adult men stood in front of the mansion, tall and serious with the tiniest of smiles on their faces.</p><p>The four looked to the caption below the photograph.</p><p>
  <em>New Twilight Town residents; Ansem (left) and his older brother Xemnas (right) stand outside their newly constructed building called </em>
  <em>
    <strong>The Twilight Manor</strong>
  </em>
  <em>.</em>
</p><p>"That's what Ansem looks like? Or I guess… looked like?" Sora asked.</p><p>"And he had a brother too?" Riku added.</p><p>"And what does it mean '<em>New Twilight Town residents'</em>?" Kairi also asked.</p><p>Roxas didn't ask a question though, but he listened carefully to each thing asked. He couldn't take his eyes off the photograph though. Seeing what Ansem looked like surprised him. The man in the photograph looked serious, but also looked like he did have a friendly side.</p><p>"How could a young man like that turn out to be evil and use dark magic? What motive could he have had to do what he has done… Even though it's just a picture… he looked like he could have been a nice man," Roxas muttered, loud enough for the rest to hear.</p><p>"I don't know," Riku answered first. "I know though we can't judge his personality on one picture. Just because he smiles there, doesn't mean he was always a good man. But this does give us some more info, though along with even more questions."</p><p>Roxas nodded. "I guess you're right about that."</p><p>"So Ansem… and his brother, they weren't even from Twilight Town to begin with?" Sora asked. "Does the article say where they came from?"</p><p>"<em>Not that I can see,"</em> Pence answered. "<em>There is still a lot of it that is heavily encrypted. It's going to take me more time if I want to clean up the piece completely."</em></p><p>"Take your time Pence. But this is helpful, so thanks for finding it," Roxas said. "Also if you can, see what you can find about old magical weapons with light magic. Sora found something that could possibly be the way to defeat Ansem."</p><p>"<em>Sure thing, I'll get right on that. Talk to you guys later."</em></p><p>Everyone thanked Pence and said their goodbyes before he hung up. They sat there for the moment, letting the new information sink in. Roxas kept looking over the article, hoping to see if there was anything else. But as Pence had said, a lot of it was unreadable. Other a few words here and there, but it wasn't enough to give him any more answers.</p><p>Roxas leaned back in his chair and stretched. "So Ansem has a brother…"</p><p>"Or had," Kairi replied. "I wanna guess something must have happened to his brother, which is why we didn't see anything about him in the other articles. And why there doesn't seem to be two demonic monsters roaming the mansion."</p><p>"What could have happened though?" Roxas ran a hand through his hair had he tried to think of a good answer, but he couldn't find anything.</p><p>"Maybe some sickness," Sora suggested. "They did live over two hundred years ago, so there could have been a sickness that was incurable back then that is cured today. Oh! And maybe if that is the case, that's what drove Ansem to use dark magics. You know, if his brother died and he wanted to bring him back. Maybe it was like that."</p><p>Kairi tilted her head slightly. "But isn't that necromancy? Magic relating to the dead, I think? If he wanted to bring back his brother from the dead, why would he use magic to turn into that monster and curse the mansion?"</p><p>"Oh… that's a good point. Forget what I said then," Sora replied as he sighed.</p><p>"We don't have to forget it entirely. Part of it could be true," Riku said, speaking up. "While the necromancy magic part may not fit into this, it is possible that Xemnas could have died before Ansem started to use dark magic. Or maybe they both were working with dark magic and something they did killed Xemnas."</p><p>Roxas groaned. "Still so many questions… Ugh…" Roxas sat up straight in his chair. "I think we have enough info on Ansem for now. What I think we need to do next is look into breaking that curse. Looking into magic and that weapon of light or that use light magic."</p><p>"Sure, but how about we get some food first, we've been working all morning," Kairi said as her eyes drifted to the clock on the wall.</p><p>The time was a quarter past one. Roxas didn't even realize how much time had gone by. He had been so intent on searching that he didn't even consider taking a break for food. But as much as he wanted to keep going, he knew that his friends would tell him to take a break.</p><p>He stood up and stretched again. "All right. Let's get some food. Then we can get back to researching right?"</p><p>Everyone nodded before standing up to head out of the room. Roxas smiled slightly. He was glad he wasn't alone on this task. At first he was afraid that his friends wouldn't want to help him. After all he caused so much trouble at the start of their vacation visiting him. But he was relieved that they still cared and wanted to help. He only hoped that they could figure out how to do it before the week was up and his friends would have to go home.</p><hr/><p>Over at the mansion, Namine was walking down the halls. Vanitas and Ventus had been spending the entire morning and afternoon together. She knew they had 14 years between each other to catch up on, and she didn't want to intrude on them.</p><p>Namine rounded the corner when she felt the temperature drop. She stopped dead in her tracks. Her eyes shifted around the hallway, looking carefully. Ansem was close by… and most likely going to show up soon.</p><p>Namine pushed herself to keep moving. She made it all the way back through the hallway until she got to her room. Though she knew she could have used her magic to teleport, she didn't trust that she would be able to do it when Ansem was trying to find her. He was still far more powerful than her and could easily cancel out any magic she attempted to do.</p><p>Namine stepped inside her door and closed the door behind her. Moments later she heard a knock on her door, as she expected.</p><p>"<strong>Namine. Come out now. There is a matter I wish to speak with you."</strong></p><p>"You can tell me through the door," Namine replied quietly.</p><p>She knew that speaking against Ansem was a huge risk. He did not take people disobeying or refusing to listen to him lightly. Though she also knew that he would not harm her. She was still useful to him and he needed as much cooperation as he could get. But he wouldn't hurt her directly… there were other ways he could get her to listen. She only hoped that it wouldn't have to lead to that.</p><p>"<strong>You shall come out. That is an order. We're… going to take a short walk through the mansion. It will not take long."</strong></p><p>Namine bit her lip. "<em>Does he know? Did he figure out I let Roxas escape? What else could it be?"</em></p><p>Namine breathed out before she turned to face the door. She wouldn't be able to argue with Ansem. But what she was worried about was facing the man directly. Though she felt no emotions, her body would sometimes react as it was natural. And seeing Ansem, whether in his human or monster form, caused a huge reflex in her.</p><p>Her body and mind knew that she was supposed to be terrified of Ansem. He stole her from her home. He brought her here and cursed her like all the rest. Her mind never forgot that. And neither did her heart… which longered to actually express the fear that she should have had.</p><p>Namine slowly opened the door and stepped out into the hall. At first there was no one there, but the temperature still remained cooler than normal. Then wisps of darkness formed and Ansem in his monstrous form appeared. Namine stared unphased, but her body instinctively tensed up.</p><p>Ansem floated closer to her face. "<strong>Good. Are you ready then for our walk?"</strong></p><p>Namine nodded slowly, but no words left her mouth.</p><p>Ansem let out a dark and eerie laugh. "<strong>It still amazes me how you can pretend to be so afraid of this form. After all of these years, I would think you would forget the little emotion you had. But you still surprise me, and that is why you are the most valuable."</strong></p><p>"Is that… what you wanted to talk about? How I appear to look afraid… when around you?" Namine asked in a quiet voice.</p><p>Ansem laughed again. "<strong>No. It is far from that. It is only interesting to note. But to help you, I shall change forms."</strong></p><p>Ansem shifted back into his human form and his feet touched the ground. He smiled coldly at Namine. Though his monstrous form was terrifying with its sharp teeth and glowing eyes, Ansem in his human form was still just as bad.</p><p>"Now," Ansem said. "Let us begin our walk."</p><p>"Okay," Namine replied.</p><p>The two of them walked down the hall. Ansem did not speak at first and Namine watched him carefully. She kept wondering how much he knew. He was the all-powerful monster of the mansion. There was little that he didn't know about that went on within the walls of his building.</p><p>"Namine," Ansem began to say, his deep voice serious and cold. "You know how I feel to see that we have a new member in my mansion, correct?"</p><p>Namine nodded slowly. "Yes. You're very happy about that, right?"</p><p>"Correct. Ever since those cowardly mortals blocked off the entrance to my mansion, we haven't had any new guests. And that saddens me deeply. But now we have a new guest, but…" Ansem trailed off, leaving Namine uncertain where he would go next.</p><p>She didn't speak up. She waited quietly for Ansem to continue. She knew he would, he only wanted to wait to make the moment more tension filled. And that left Namine wondered more and more if he really knew what she had done.</p><p>Soon Ansem started to speak again. "But… I feel that we are missing something. Or really someone," Ansem stopped walking as he leaned closer to Namine's face. "Wouldn't you agree, Namine?"</p><p>"I don't know what you mean," Namine replied softly.</p><p>Thankfully without emotions, it made it easier to lie without having the expression that one is lying. But Ansem was still smart. Even without an emotion on someone's face to read, he still could tell what they were thinking. He had been around long enough to pick up skills such as that.</p><p>Ansem narrowed his eyes. "Do not lie, Namine. I know everything that happens here. And I know exactly what you did."</p><p>Without waiting for Namine's response, Anse reached around and grabbed her wrists. He did not squeeze them, but the grip was tight enough that she would not be able to pull away. Ansem's amber-orange eyes glared right into Namine's gentle blue.</p><p>There was no fear that Namine could feel. But her body was still reacting. She could at least feel that her hands were trembling. And now a debate began to form in her head. She started to become unsure of what she was going to do. She did not want to get Roxas dragged back here. That was the last thing she wanted to happen. She still had her hope that Roxas could find a way to break the curse.</p><p>But if she kept quiet and lied to Ansem… things could get much worse. Not to her though… as Ansem still wouldn't harm her, but he would find a way to make her wish she hadn't lied. Most likely if she kept quiet and lied, Ansem would bring harm to Vanitas as punishment. Namine didn't want that either.</p><p>"Namine," Ansem growled. "You know better than to try and hide things from me."</p><p>"What exactly did I do wrong?" Namine asked as she lowered her head. She thought it was better to see what Ansem had to say. If by some chance he didn't actually know about Roxas, she wanted to keep it that way. But the more it was dragging on, the more she felt he did know.</p><p>"You let someone escape from the mansion."</p><p>Namine bit her lip. He did know. And from the tone of his voice he was clearly upset.</p><p>"Not just once… but twice. Do you think I do not know when someone enters my mansion? It is my mansion, my curse. I know when someone comes even when I am away. And for me to return to find the one I sensed entering… gone…. I am far from pleased."</p><p>"I'm sorry…" Namine whispered.</p><p>"I don't think you are. Not only did you let this person escape twice, but before the second time I sensed you brought the person back to your… safe haven room. I would assume that you have given away vital information to whomever this is. Is this correct?"</p><p>Namien remained quiet at first. Disappointed that she had not gotten away with what she had planned. Given in, she nodded her head again.</p><p>"You know we can't have something like that. This is very irresponsible of you Namine. I thought I taught you better not step out of line. But you do not have to worry."</p><p>Ansem released Namine from his grasp. Slowly she looked up to meet his cold gaze once more.</p><p>"You can make it up to me by fixing this. Bring the one you let escape back here tonight. Use whatever magic you prefer, but this is the task that I give to you. Understand?"</p><p>Namien did not move. She did not even make a sound. She only could keep thinking how she messed up. She hoped she could have saved Roxas from such a fate, but now he was going to be stuck like the rest of them. And it was her fault.</p><p>"Namine," Ansem said, raising his voice. "If you do not comprehend and do not do as I ask, I will have no choice but to give a punishment instead. And I am sure you do not want that."</p><p>Ansem slowly sneered. He chuckled sinisterly. "If you do not bring the person here tonight, your punishment will be grave. I am sure you would much rather bring a new guest here to join us rather than… having me strip away everything from Vantias, leaving him an empty husk."</p><p>Ansem paused, letting the weight of what he was about to say sink in. He watched as Namine's eyes grew wide. "No! Don't… Please don't do that."</p><p>"Then you will do as I ask?"</p><p>Namine lowered her head once more. She hated that she was struck in this predicament. While she did not want to bring Roxas here to join the other cursed. She didn't want anything to happen to Vanitas. If she were to lose Vanitas… she wasn't sure if she would be able to manage it. Even without emotions she knew that she cared for him. And having him be hurt because of something she did wasn't what she wanted.</p><p>"Yes Ansem. I'll do it tonight," Namine responded weakly.</p><p>"Good. I shall be waiting for his arrival. You are free to resume whatever you were doing before," Ansem said before disappearing into the darkness.</p><p>Namine stood perfectly still. The weight of what just happened still sinking deep into her skin. "<em>I should have known… Ansem always knows what happens… I'm sorry Roxas… I was a fool to think this was going to work. Though… I can only hope you find out a way before you're brought here. Maybe… just maybe then maybe we still may have a chance."</em></p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>The plot continues to thicken!! What will happen next? Find out next time!!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Chapter 16</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Long chapter today! And it's one of my favorite ones!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Night came sooner than expected, but then again neither Roxas or the others were paying attention to the time. They had spent a lot of time trying to figure out more information. They specifically were trying to find one thing.</p><p>They wanted to know what the fabled weapon of light was. If they could find out more about that, then they would have something. They would have an idea how to get rid of Ansem. That would be taken care of, but the fate of everything still in the mansion was another task.</p><p>Roxas yawned before stretching his arms out. He finally took the chance to glance at the clock. It was already half past midnight.</p><p>He sighed. He almost couldn't believe how much time had gone by. The entire day had been spent researching and they still weren't all that far. Many of the leads they thought they had ended up being dead ends.</p><p>"I think we should call it a night," Roxas said.</p><p>The three others looked up from their computers. All of them had the same tired look. Roxas could only assume he has the same expression as they did. Slowly he ran his hands over his face.</p><p>"Sorry this day was a waste…" he mumbled from under his hands.</p><p>"Don't say that Roxas," Kairi interjected. "We've learned a lot today. We may not have found out everything, but I think we got a good bit."</p><p>"Yeah, Kairi's right. We learned there is a way to defeat Ansem, but we just need to find out where it is," Sora added.</p><p>"But where could it even be? Does it still exist? What if it doesn't? And what if it isn't in this town?" Roxas spat out. His mind was racing with hundreds of questions. Hundreds of questions he wasn't sure had answers.</p><p>"Roxas, I'm sure we will figure-" Riku started to say.</p><p>"And what if this weapon of light is in another town? We can't just get up and go out there and search for it. And… And what if the longer we wait… the less likely it is that we can defeat him…"</p><p>Roxas lowered his head. He tried his best to hold his feelings back. The last thing he wanted was to break down crying again in front of his friends. He was supposed to be strong yet all of this felt far too heavy.</p><p>Kairi moved from her spot on the floor and stood next to Roxas. He could feel her hand gently resting on his shoulder. He started to feel less secure about holding in what was burning up inside of him. All of his worries and fears were trying to break out and reveal themselves.</p><p>"Roxas," Kairi asked softly. "I know this is hard. None of us expected it to happen. But we can't lose hope or give up. We're doing this for Ventus. For Vanitas. And for everyone else who is still trapped in that mansion."</p><p>Hearing Ventus's name was what broke the wall he was trying to keep. His eyes watered, and his heart started to ache. Not wanting to show his tears to his friends again, he quickly buried his face into his hands. He only hoped he could muffle his sobs. But he knew his friends and they knew him. He couldn't easily hide what he was feeling from them.</p><p>"What if we fail? Wh-What if it's too late? If we wait too long it could be too late to save Ven… an… and then h-he'll be stuck there. F-Forever…"</p><p>Kairi moved closer to Roxas and embraced him. Riku and Sora took note of Roxas's state and stood up. They had been Roxas's friend for only a few years. Kairi was the one that knew him first and that's how they met. But in that short time they had gotten to know one another. And they knew that Roxas hardly ever showed this side of him. He rarely showed a negative outlook towards anything.</p><p>But now here they were. And there was Roxas; broken and hurt.</p><p>They moved closer before joining in the embrace. They wanted to help Roxas as much as possible. Neither of them knew what it must have been like for Roxas to see Ventus attacked by Ansem. They hadn't even seen Ansem. They only knew based on the images they found online and what Roxas described. And from that, it must have been terrifying.</p><p>"I'm a-afraid… afraid I'll fail and never see him again," Roxas murmured as he felt the warm embraces of his three friends.</p><p>"You can't give up," Kair said, keeping a strong determination in her tone. "But Roxas, if you need to talk about it, we're here for you."</p><p>"You can tell us," Sora said, adding on to what Kairi was talking about. "We don't want to see you struggling alone on this."</p><p>"But Namine trusted me. She wants me to find a way… and I just… I don't know…"</p><p>Now it was Riku's turn to add to the helpful words. "That doesn't mean you bash yourself over the head with it. Namine may have asked you to help, but we aren't going to let you do it all on your own."</p><p>"B-But…"</p><p>"No buts," Kairi said. "We are going to keep trying. And that is that, right guys?"</p><p>Kairi looked towards Riku and Sora who nodded in agreement. Roxas raised his head to see them nodded. They then looked to Roxas and offered friendly smiles. He could see the honesty and sincerity in those smiles. They were his friends. They were his true, good-hearted friends who wouldn't turn their backs on him. And he couldn't be more grateful for that.</p><p>He closed his eyes to breathe. He knew that was the first thing that had to come, otherwise his voice would crack and still sound dry and weak. He wanted to show his friends that he was strong like they were being. Though all of them were still afraid of what the mansion held, they were going into this research with a fierce strength in their minds and hearts.</p><p>After a few moments passed, Roxas moved to stand up. His friends let go of him and stepped back as he got out of his chair. "Thanks guys. I guess I needed another pep talk to clear my head."</p><p>Sora smiled largely. "Always glad to give a pep talk to cheer people up."</p><p>Roxas smiled back. "Yeah I know." He glanced at the clock once more. He let out a yawn. "I think it may be best if we go to bed right now. I don't think researching without any brain power will be helpful."</p><p>Everyone nodded. They all were tired and could barely keep their eyes on their screens. Some well needed rest was what they all needed. And they all knew tomorrow would be another day to continue their search. But for now they needed to rest their weary minds, and hope that tomorrow could bring more information.</p><hr/><p>When Roxas first laid back in his bed, he wasn't sure he would be able to sleep. The day had started with him waking from a nightmare and the rest was spent researching. But he found out that his mind was exhausted. The moment his head rested against the pillow, he was out.</p><p>His mind finally was calm and started to drift into dreamland. And everything started with a white blurry world around him.</p><p>It was weird. He was standing in a white word, and somehow in his mind he knew he was dreaming. It was the weirdest feeling he ever had. He couldn't remember if he had ever had a dream like this. A dream where he knew he was dreaming… it felt weird.</p><p>Roxas started to walk about the white world. But it was only blank and white in every direction.</p><p>"<em>What even is this place?"</em> Roxas thought as he wandered across the vacant land.</p><p>"It's where we can talk without Ansem knowing," a voice answered.</p><p>Roxas jumped, caught by surprise from the sudden presence of someone else. He whipped around and saw Namine standing behind him. Though she faced Roxas, her eyes were not looking at him. Her expression was troubled as she fidgeted with her hands.</p><p>"Namine?" Roxas asked.</p><p>He breathed slowly as he took a step near her. He remembered what she said to him last night. Was this going to be the same? Was she going to ask him to save her and all the rest again? He waited to see what she was going to do, but she didn't move her eyes up to Roxas's gaze.</p><p>"Uh… Namine?" Roxas asked again, taking another step closer.</p><p>"I'm sorry…" Her voice was quiet and weak.</p><p>She lowered her head, waiting to keep herself from looking at Roxas. But that made him only more confused. He didn't understand why he would be dreaming Namine like this. She looked so sad and hurt for someone without the ability to feel emotions.</p><p>"Why are you sorry?" Roxas took another step and now was right besides Namine.</p><p>She seemed to have noticed her presence and shifted to the side. She bawled her hands into fists, hoping to keep them from fidgeting even more. But it only showed how shaky her hands really were.</p><p>"You know… in a dream, I can pretend. I can dream anything I want. I can even dream… that I have emotions," Namine said. "But it still doesn't actually help me understand how I would <em>feel</em> with them. I can mimic what it would be like all I want… but it's not the real thing."</p><p>Roxas stared at Namine as she talked. Confusion sinked into his mind as he listened. "<em>Why is she talking about this? I don't get it… Why am I dreaming about her saying this?"</em></p><p>"I really wanted to understand emotions. I wanted to be able to feel them. I hoped one day there would be a way to stop Ansem and reverse what he's done. B-But… I wasn't thinking when I asked you. I'm sorry if I put too much pressure on you."</p><p>"Namine, it's… it's okay," Roxas spoke softly. "I've found out a lot. There is a way to defeat Ansem, or at least the creature he became. There's some weapon of light or something. We haven't figured out what it is yet, but I know we can do it."</p><p>He hoped that he could comfort Namine, now starting to understand her view point. He never had given it much thought in the short time since meeting her. But now he saw how she must feel... or wished to feel.</p><p>Namine shook her head. "It's not okay. I used you to try and save all of us. I just did what I wished I could do and now it's all my fault…"</p><p>"You didn't do anything wrong," Roxas said as he reached out to place a hand on Namine's shoulder.</p><p>She pulled away and raised her head. While her voice had kept the same tone and strength the entire time, tears were flowing down her eyes. "I did though. Roxas… and now it's all for nothing."</p><p>Namine stared right into his eyes. Her blue eyes widened and hurt. "Ansem knows that I let you escape. And now… he has forced my hand."</p><p>Roxas's own eyes widened. Taking a step back, he tried to think what Namine could possibly mean. Though in his stomach he could feel an uneasy knot forming. Something in his mind was telling him that this was not actually a regular dream. Everything felt too surreal. Too serious. There was no way that this was just a regular dream.</p><p>"<em>Is it possible that Namine has powers to do this? She entered my dream to talk to me? If so… there has to be some reason for it."</em></p><p>He waited for Namine to answer, but she closed herself off again. She tightened her composure and took another step away.</p><p>When Roxas realized that Namine wasn't going to answer, he saw that he had to continue to question. "Namine. What do you mean? What did Ansem do?"</p><p>Namine breathed out slowly. "He's making me bring you back to the mansion, otherwise… he'll hurt Vanitas."</p><p>"Wait what?! But I haven't finished researching how to defeat Ansem! How did he even know?"</p><p>More tears trailed down Namine's face. She shook her head back and forth. "I can't… I'm sorry Roxas. I didn't want it to end up like this. I'm really sorry Roxas. I'll understand if you don't choose to forgive me…"</p><p>"Namine! Wait! I don't understand what's going to-"</p><p>Even though the world around them was white and bland, everything started to blur. Roxas opened his mouth to continue speaking, but his brain could no longer process anything. He tried to move, but even his body refused to listen.</p><p>The last thing he saw was Namine staring at him with sadness in her eyes.</p><hr/><p>Kairi shifted in her sleeping bag. She had been tossing and turning for a while and she had yet to fall asleep. As she turned onto her left side, she heard something move in the room. She opened her eyes, and looked around. With being awake for so long her eyes were perfectly adjusted to see who was moving around.</p><p>Across the room she saw Roxas get up from his bed and slowly shuffle out the door. Kairi figured he may have been going to the bathroom, but for some reason her gut was telling her otherwise.</p><p>Kairi crawled out of her sleeping bag and tiptoed to the door of the room. She peered her head out of the door and saw Roxas shuffling slowly down the hall. She watched as he walked right past the bathroom and started to walk down the stairs.</p><p>That was when she really knew that something was off. "Roxas?"</p><p>There was no response. Roxas only continued down the stairs.</p><p>"Roxas!" Kairi said. She raised her voice slightly as she walked over to the top of the stairs. "Hey Roxas! Where are you going?"</p><p>Roxas still did not answer. He didn't even stop or look back. There was no indication that he had even heard her. Kairi ran down the stairs and turned to face Roxas as he approached the bottom.</p><p>When she looked at him, she gasped in shock. She looked at his eyes, and what she saw wasn't what she expected. His eyes weren't closed, but instead wide open. But his eyes were glazed and vacant looking. He seemed to be spaced out as he wandered closer and closer to them.</p><p>Without blinking or stopping, Roxas kept walking. It was almost like he didn't even see Kairi. She reached around and held on to his wrist. "Roxas! Can you hear me? Are you okay? Are you awake?"</p><p>Roxas once again didn't even stop walking. He kept moving on and Kairi almost lost her balance. She let go of Roxas so she wouldn't fall over or be dragged by him, but she had seen enough. She knew something was wrong.</p><p>Trying to hold in a panicked breath, she bolted up the stairs and back to the bedroom where she switched on the lights. "Sora! Riku! Wake up!"</p><p>The boys groaned, shielding their eyes from the sudden light. Kairi took no time in waiting for them. She ran over to them and shook them both by their shoulders. "Guys, come on! Something is weird with Roxas!"</p><p>Riku was the first of the two to sit up. "Weird with Roxas? What…" He yawned briefly. "What do you mean?"</p><p>"He's just walking down the stairs and he isn't listening. I'm really worried."</p><p>"Maybe he sleepwalks?" Sora suggested.</p><p>"I don't think this is sleepwalking. Come on please." Kairi jumped to her feet and headed out of the bedroom door, not waiting for the others to respond.</p><p>Sora and Riku looked at each other, both having a mix of tired and confused looks. They got up and headed out to find Kairi already down the stairs and out the front door. Roxas was also nowhere in sight.</p><p>Riku and Sora, now worried and wake, ran out the front door and began to look for where Kairi and Roxas were. Thankfully Kairi was only a few feet in front of them. They picked up their pace and caught up to her.</p><p>"Where's Roxas?" Riku asked.</p><p>"He's up ahead I think," Kairi replied.</p><p>All three of them picked up speed and ran to where they thought Roxas may be. It wasn't too taxing on them mainly because Roxas was still walking at such a slow pace. When they got to him, they stood in front of him, hoping that they would be able to stop him.</p><p>"Roxas! Snap out of it! It's the middle of the night!" Sora shouted, but Roxas kept walking.</p><p>He walked right up to them, his eyes still dazed and unfocused. Without even stopped he pushed right past them. He didn't even hesitate or look in their direction. He kept on walking down the street, leaving the other three surprised. They watched him walk until he turned a corner.</p><p>"Where do you think he is headed?" Kairi asked once she regained her thoughts and began to walk again.</p><p>"I don't know… but isn't this path heading towards the Underground Tunnel area?" Riku asked as he quickly rounded the corner, trying to keep Roxas in sight.</p><p>"Yeah, but why is he walking that way?" Sora asked. He suddenly gasped. "What if it's the mansion's doing? Or Ansem's? Like Roxas entered the mansion, but escaped. Maybe he's being called back cause he wasn't supposed to do that."</p><p>Riku hummed as he thought over the idea. "I guess that could be a reason. But how is he going to get there? Pence closed the tunnels."</p><p>"I'm guessing that's how," Kairi added as she pointed to what was ahead of them.</p><p>Roxas was standing before the gate that lead to the tunnels. The gate had a slight glow to it as it opened. Once again Riku, Sora, and Kairi were surprised. Within just a few days they had learned that magic still existed. And they were now seeing it in action. All of them only wished the circumstances were not as dire as they currently were, otherwise it would have been more enjoyable and amazing.</p><p>"We gotta stop him!" Kairi ran forward and grabbed onto Roxas before he headed down into the tunnel system. " Roxas snap out of it!"</p><p>A flash of light burst around Roxas and Kairi was knocked to the ground. Riku and Sora ran up to her and helped up, not watching as Roxas walked on.</p><p>"You okay, Kairi?" Sora asked.</p><p>"I'm fine. But that was so weird. I went to try and hold him again, but something prevented me."</p><p>"I think I'll take a wild guess and say it was magic again," Riku answered.</p><p>Once the three of them were ready they followed into the tunnel system. They walked down the dark path. With the urgency from Kairi, none of them had thought to bring a flashlight. They were nearly encased in the darkness of the tunnels. But their eyes were already adjusted to the darkness that it was not as bad as they had thought.</p><p>They kept close together as they walked further through. Eventually they came to the gate that led out to the mansion. It was already open which meant that Roxas was still ahead of them. Once they saw the faint moonlight from the end of the tunnel, they ran.</p><p>They ran all the way until they approached the mansion's gate. There they saw that it was already open and Roxas was halfway to the doors. Kairi pushed herself to go faster. She had to make it to Roxas before he got back in the mansion. She had to try. She wasn't about to lose one of her best friends to a cursed mansion.</p><p>"Kairi wait!"</p><p>Kairi was yanked back before she could cross onto the lawn. She looked back to see Riku was the one to grab and pull her back. She was about to protest, but the sound of the gate slamming shut answered her questions.</p><p>"Riku, let go of me! We have to get to Roxas!"</p><p>"And get trapped there like him? Think for a moment Kairi. If we go in there after him, we'll be trapped just like the rest."</p><p>"But…"</p><p>Kairi tried to say more, but she couldn't find her words anymore. She glanced at Roxas who now had walked through the doors. She tried to break from Riku's hold, but he kept his grip firm and tight. She wanted to break free though. Roxas was going to be trapped! Why couldn't they try something!</p><p>It seemed at least Sora was going to try something. He ran right up to the gate and held onto the bars. "ROXAS!" Sora shouted as loudly as he could while shaking the bars of the gate. "Snap out of it! Come back before it's too late!"</p><p>Roxas never heard anything Sora said and fully entered the mansion. The doors slammed behind him and now there was no way of knowing what was happening inside. Sora's hands tightened onto the bars. He felt a burst of anger inside of him at the sight of the doors closing. He wasn't ready to lose his friend. Using all his strength he started to climb up the gate.</p><p>"Sora! Get off there. We don't need you getting trapped as well," Riku scolded while trying to keep Kairi from doing the same thing as Sora.</p><p>"But someone has to go in after him! Maybe it's not too late!" Sora replied quickly.</p><p>Riku shook his head. "No! It's too risky! We have to go back and continue researching!</p><p>Just as Sora was ready to respond, a light glowed from the center of the lawn. All three looked at a young girl in a white dress who had appeared.</p><p>Namine.</p><p>"Please. You all must go back."</p><p>"But Roxas…" Sora said, he lowered his voice.</p><p>None of them had actually seen Namine up close. They only had seen her once the first time Roxas ran into the mansion. But now there she was, only a few feet away from the gate.</p><p>"You all must leave. Ansem is current… distracted with… Roxas. You need to turn back before he's finished. And if you can, please continue to find information. I doubt we can do much here… but we can try."</p><p>"I don't want to leave Roxas though!" Kairi replied.</p><p>"I'll make sure he will be okay. I promise… but please leave now."</p><p>"Isn't there anything else you can do?" Sora asked. "Surely you can do something."</p><p>Namine shook her head. "No I can't. But I can keep you from being caught now. So please… I'm sorry…"</p><p>Namine raised her hand and moved her fingers slightly. A white glow formed around the gate. A bright flash was produced and Sora yelled in shock. He felt his fingers loosen around the bars, which now felt searing hot. The world around him seemed to move in slow motion as he saw he was falling back from the gate.</p><p>He closed his eyes tightly and braced for hitting the cold ground. But to his surprise it never happened. He opened his eyes and saw he was encased in the same glowing light. He was floating towards the ground. When he got close enough he shifted and put his feet first and felt them resting firmly on the ground.</p><p>Kairi and Riku watched and Sora turned around, and collapsed right to the ground. Riku finally let go of Kairi and ran over to Sora. He felt a huge bit of relief when he saw that Sora was still breathing.</p><p>Quickly he turned to Namine. "What did you do?!"</p><p>Namine shook her head again, this time more vigorously. "I can't explain now. He'll be fine. But please… please leave. You need to hurry now."</p><p>Riku wanted to argue, but he realized that Namine was right. They had to get out of there now, unless they wanted to end up trapped. No matter what, they still had to solve the mystery of defeating Ansem. Otherwise it would be over for all of them.</p><p>Riku scooped up Sora into his arms and turned around. Kairi opened her mouth to protest, but she saw the serious look in Riku's eyes. It was a look that he only showed when he was truly serious about a matter. And right now escaping what that mattered.</p><p>The two of them ran without looking back. If they had looked back, they would have seen Namine watching them run. Her hands clasped and over her chest. Once again trying to imagine what it would be like to have emotions. She knew she was putting on a big risk again. But this was all she had. She had to try.</p><p>If what Roxas briefly told her in the dream was true… there was a weapon of light out there. And it could be the key to defeating Ansem and breaking the curse. And that was all she needed to try and imagine hope again. Hope that this will all work out… even though Roxas was now part of the mansion just like her.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So how was that? Heh did anyone see that coming? If you have any thoughts let me know! </p><p>Always as always thanks for reading and I will see you all in the next chapter!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Chapter 17</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Riku and Kairi scrambled back to the house as fast as their legs could carry them. Riku did trail behind at times while still carrying Sora, but he didn’t stop once until they were back at the house. </span>
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  <span>Once inside they placed Sora down on the couch and finally dropped to the floor to catch their breath. Both of them breathed deeping, trying their best to calm their racing hearts from going too much faster. </span>
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  <span>“Why did we just run?! We should have done something!” Kairi shouted. </span>
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  <span>“We had no choice!” Riku shouted back. “You saw what Namine did to Sora… whatever it is. Plus there is still the fact that Ansem was in the mansion, if he ended up knowing we were there, we all could have been trapped there.”</span>
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  <span>“But… but Roxas is trapped there.”</span>
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  <span>“But it isn’t all of us. We are still here and we can figure out a way to stop all of this… hopefully…” </span>
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  <span>Kairi choked on a sob before pressing her hands to her face. Her body shaked heavily with each sob that left her. Right away Riku was over there and embracing her, holding her close. He didn’t say a word, he only held her close and let her cry out onto his shoulder. </span>
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  <span>“I’m… I’m scared,” Kairi whispered in between raspy breaths. “What’s going to happen?”</span>
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  <span>“What’s going to happen is this,” Riku said, whispering to her quietly. “We are going to continue to do the research. We will find an answer to all of this, and we are going to free everyone. I know it’s risky, but we gotta take this chance. Can’t let anything slip away from us.”</span>
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  <span>“Right,” Kairi agreed. “But what about…” Kairi turned to look at Sora who still slept quietly. “Sora…”</span>
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  <span>“I guess we just need to wait and see. We don’t know what it is that Namine did, but maybe… maybe he’s just sleeping for now.”</span>
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  <span>“I hope…” </span>
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  <span>“Come on Kairi, let’s start doing more research, we don’t have time to waste,” Riku said as he headed to go and get his laptop.</span>
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  <span>Kairi stared at Sora for a moment, watching him breathing peacefully. After that she shook her head, trying to refocus herself. She knew that Riku was right and that they had to get to work, but there were still so many questions that she had about the situation. But only time would tell if she were to get any of them actually answered. </span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Namine sat at the table in her room. She hadn’t been out of her room since the event on the lawn of the mansion. Once she had seen Roxas’s friends leave, she headed right back, and pleaded that Ansem never noticed.</span>
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  <span>She hadn’t thought to leave her room though. Not yet. She wasn’t sure if she was ready to face Roxas again. But she knew that eventually she would have to leave her room, and then she would see him. And then… she wasn’t sure what would happen then. But she didn’t want to think about it. </span>
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  <span>Namine stopped pacing. She decided that she would devote her energy to something else while she waited. She sat herself down at her table and pulled over one of her sketchbooks. Right away she flipped open to a fresh new page and began to lightly sketch. She wasn’t even sure what she was trying to draw, there were no concrete thoughts in her mind at all to tell her. </span>
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  <span>Before she knew it, she had created a light outline of a face. No detail was made though on it… it was just that… a blank face. Namine let out a sigh before dropping her pencil and flopped back into her chair. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She let out a long sigh before her thoughts flowed over her again, thinking over every moment that had happened this very night. She wanted to feel bad about it, she wanted to feel remorse for what she had done to Roxas. But as there had always been for nearly her entire light… there was nothing. Just an emptiness inside that was hollow and ached for what could be, but never was able to. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A light knock on her door jumped her away from falling too deeply into her thoughts. “Yes?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Namine, it’s me,” Vanitas’s voice came from the other side. “Can I come in?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You can,” Namine replied. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Vanitas stepped into the room and right away walked over to Namine. He placed a hand on her shoulder, looking over her carefully. “Are you doing okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m fine… fine as someone without emotions can be,” Namine replied softly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey… that’s not like you, Namine.” Vanitas pulled up a chair and sat right next to her. “What’s on your mind?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Roxas… I know if I had emotions I would be worrying what he thinks of me now. I dragged him unwillingly here to be trapped like the rest of us. I don’t even know if he resented me in his last moments of still having emotions. I know it was Ansem who made me do it, but I could not oppose him.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Despite the want for emotions again, the lack of said emotions did always make things easier when explaining. WIthout having any fear or anxiety to hold back a person’s thoughts, they could easily and freely explain themselves. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am sure he doesn’t hate you. It’s Ansem who is to blame, he is the one who caused all of this Honestly though he could just blame me. It was my fault for going into the mansion in the first place that led Ventus to be traumatized by that and then Roxas was curious or something like that. All just a lot of small connections.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I guess so… but I am still wondering what he is going to think when he wakes up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, why don’t you go to talk to him?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think I want to… not yet at least. He should just have time with his brother or something first before trying to talk to me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If that is what you want,” Vanitas said before wrapping an arm around Namine, giving her a small side hug. “Don’t beat yourself up over it, not that you can do that emotionally anyways, but you know semantics. But hey, everything’s going to be okay.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Will it really?” Namine asked, sounding heavily doubtful. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d like to believe it after all that has happened so far. There still could be hope.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Roxas’s friends… they made it away safely… Maybe they could still do something about this,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Namine thought to herself. She thought about telling Vanitas this, but she knew that Ansem had ears everywhere. In fact he probably already knew that Roxas’s friends escaped but now he was waiting for the perfect moment. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I am going to stay here for now. Maybe work on some drawings. If Roxas wakes up… and he wants to talk to me… let him know where I am, okay?” Namine asked as she looked over towards Vanitas. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sure thing, but right now I think you need the company. So who were you thinking of drawing?” Vanitas gestured to the drawing that was in front of Namine. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know… nothing is really coming to mind.” Namine traced her fingers over the paper, letting her thoughts wander, trying to figure out who she could draw. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well hey, you could draw me again,” Vanitas said before grinning. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But I’ve drawn you so many times!” Namine exclaimed, trying to sound overdramatic. “I’ve already mastered how you draw your spiky mess of hair.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ha, that is true. But hm… what about drawing Roxas?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah… I don’t know…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You can’t keep going on and avoiding him. He is stuck here like the rest of us and that means at some point you will have to talk to him,” Vanitas replied. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Both Namine and Vanitas looked over there before Namine asked who was there. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s me,” Lea’s voice came from the other side. “We need you guys. Something is off about Roxas.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Huh?” Namine stood up quickly, nearly knocking her chair to the ground. “Something’s… off?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Lea said as he opened the door slightly. “I can’t explain it, just come on!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The three of them headed down the hall to the room that Roxas was in. When they entered inside, Isa and Ventus were still there, with Ventus by the bedside. Roxa was sitting up in the bed, but there was clearly something wrong about the way he looked. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Namine approached slowly and she started to get the bigger picture. Roxas was sitting up and he was awake, but there was a foggy look in his eyes. Hazy and distant he wasn’t actually focusing on anything or anyone. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“R-Roxas?” Namine asked softly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roxas slowly turned his head towards her, his eyes stuff far from focused. He blinked a few times, but never spoke a word. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ventus sighed. “That’s all he has been doing since he woke up. He turns to the source of the sound and just stares… do you know what’s wrong with him?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know… never seen something like this before,” Namine replied as she closed her eyes. She raised one hand out towards Roxas and focused on her magic. She wasn’t too sure if it would give her a concrete answer, but she searched for what she could. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>After a bit of deep thinking, she actually came across something that could prove to be some form of answer. “I think I understand…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Namine turned to face the entire group that was in the room. “Roxas… he was under the trance I had put him in to bring him to the mansion. But… I never brought him out of the trance when Ansem… you know…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So what you’re saying is, he is still in that trace?” Lea asked. “Like he is just some kind of zombie right now?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Basically… I guess you could phrase it that way…” Namine said before lowering her head. “I’m sorry…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She felt a hand on her shoulder. Looking up she saw that it was actually Ventus. “You don’t gotta be sorry. But… is there anything you can do about it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know… this has never happened before. But… I can try.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Namine looked to Roxas again, who still was staring at her with his hazy eyes. She reached forward and placed a hand on top of his forehead. A small bit of magic flowed around her hand and then around Roxas’s head. In the next moment he closed her eyes and fell back to the bed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He is probably going to sleep for a bit longer than usual now… but hopefully when he wakes up he should be out of that trance… if not I can try something else.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks Namine,” Ventus replied as he pulled the covers over Roxas to cover him better. After that he looked around to everyone else that was standing in the room. “You think I could just have some time alone with Roxas? Just to be by him and stuff even if he is still sleeping.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Isa nodded and left without a word, and Lea quickly followed after him. Vanitas walked over to Namine as she slowly stood up from the bed. “Wanna go for a walk around the mansion? Maybe it will help you clear your head.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sure,” Namine agreed. She gave one last look to Roxas, who looked to be peacefully sleeping at least. She sighed to herself before heading out of the room with Vanitas, off to walk through the mansion. Though even with walking around she knew that she couldn’t shake off the many thoughts that spun around in her mind. There were still too many loose ends that didn’t have a solution yet and she just couldn’t stop thinking about them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>All she had left was to hope that maybe Roxas had something before he was brought to her, or maybe… just maybe his friends could figure something out. She had no idea exactly what he had been doing with them or what why had been looking up, but she could only keep on hoping that there would be answers. Hoping and pleading that all of this wouldn’t be for nothing. That was all she had left that she could do. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Finally I am caught up with the version on Fanfiction.net!! So it will be a little bit before the next chapter but until then hope you all have enjoyed! And see you all next time in this story or another!!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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